The Candidates
I found this poll on a MyDD diary. I thought it was quite illustrative about how much polls change over a few months time, but also that it’s shocking that Ross Perot was ahead of both President George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton. What a crazy election that was.
Gallup June 1992 General Election
- Ross Perot 34%
- George Bush 32%
- Bill Clinton 24%
Insanity.
April 28th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
I remember that. I’m old.
I also remember the April polling from Fox News showing Bush up 3. So its not like we never end up with results that look like the April polls.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,119217,00.html
April 28th, 2008 at 8:35 pm
People must have thought Clinton was a joke being in third place at that time.
April 28th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
Actually, that wasn’t Perot’s best showing in a poll. If memory serves, he topped 40% once.
April 28th, 2008 at 9:06 pm
How many more polls will it take for the superdelegates to realize Obama is like Perot because they both poll a lot better than they perform? That’s gotta take the wind out of the sails of hope and change.
April 28th, 2008 at 9:17 pm
well, I was a grand total of six months old then - but didn’t Perot drop out, make some crazy accusations against the GOP, and then jump back in?
It would have been interesting to see how many electoral votes he would have won.
April 28th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
Perot had a pretty good chance of winning until he dropped out and then re-entered the race.
April 28th, 2008 at 9:45 pm
ACT Blog is younger than I am?
April 28th, 2008 at 9:52 pm
7, That would make him too young to vote in this election.
April 28th, 2008 at 10:00 pm
This is an easy one to explain, it happens in many elections. The public is dissatisfied with the field, so they gravitate to what they don’t know, but place their own ideals upon the candidate. Once the candidate gets in the race, the publics expectations aren’t met as they discover what the candidate really stands for. The candidate’s numbers plummet come election time. See Thompson, Fred.
April 28th, 2008 at 10:12 pm
I’m just curious, who else on this blog is under 20? I thought the majority of people on political blogs were a little older.
April 28th, 2008 at 10:21 pm
10, I’m 20.
April 28th, 2008 at 10:38 pm
I’m the ripe old age of 15.
April 28th, 2008 at 10:39 pm
Darn, here I was thinking that I was the youngin at 19
April 28th, 2008 at 10:53 pm
I’m 24.
Are there any democrats out there who can use this poll to argue “never underestimate the Clintons”?
April 28th, 2008 at 10:54 pm
Im about to be 21…
April 28th, 2008 at 11:13 pm
Let me just say this. Several of you who are very young articulate your positions very well, and I , for one, am very impressed at the depth of your understanding and historical perspective. After retiring from management in a large industrial corporation, I now do some substitute teaching, and I must say I don’t see many of your caliber running the hallways here in central Illinois. I wish I did. Good job guys. I don’t always agree with everything each of you say, but you do a good job communicating your positions, each coming from your particular background and perspective.
April 28th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
I’m routinely shocked when anyone mentions their age here - I generally assume most of the posters and commentators here are older, but then they say they’re still in school, or whatnot. There’s a few where the reality meets the expectation.
I’m 24.
April 29th, 2008 at 1:00 am
I was out of the country during the entire election and was totally shocked when I heard we had a President Clinton. CLINTON??? Who the heck is he?
Utah has a badge of honor for being the only state where Bill Clinton came in 3rd behind Bush and Perot. I have to admit being very, very excited when I came back into the country in mid-1993 and heard Bill Clinton’s State of the Union address in January, 1994. He’s quite the effective speaker… Universal healthcare looked pretty good for me at the time, making $7 an hour and going to school. I’ve never forgotten that drive home from Pasadena, CA to Palmdale, CA listening to the State of the Union.
Let’s just say I’ve come a long way.
April 29th, 2008 at 6:49 am
#6 hit the nail on the head. Before dropping out…and then jumping back in, Perot was leading the race in many polls. When he jumped back in, in October he was in single digits…and yet still garnered over 19% of the vote in November. Perot very well could have beaten both Bush and Clinton in 1992 had he not dropped out…but, we’ll never know.
April 29th, 2008 at 6:55 am
[...] blogger recalls a moment in 1992 that reminds us that election years can be quite [...]
April 29th, 2008 at 8:36 am
ActBlog, you were only 6 months old in 1992? So you are 16 now? You are smart for your age!
April 29th, 2008 at 8:44 am
ActBlog, you mention that you wonder how many votes Perot would have won. Perot did very poorly in the South, mediocre in the large industrial states. He did very well in New England and in the interior West, but not particularly well with Hispanics. If each candidate had gotten a third of the vote, Bush would have swept the South, Perot would have gotten most of the West and New England. Clinton would have gotten a few Democratic states here and there probably including California and New York.
April 29th, 2008 at 8:46 am
ogrepete, Maine also was unique in that even though Bush had a summer home there, it was the only state where he came in third with 39 for Clinton, 30 each for Bush and Perot, with Perot edging out Bush.
April 29th, 2008 at 9:34 am
Illinoisguy,
I live in Bloomington, IL. Where in central Illinois are you?
April 29th, 2008 at 10:11 am
Decatur
May 26th, 2008 at 8:09 pm
[...] I’d like to take comfort in points 1 and 2, there was a certain presidential candidate who was polling very poorly in 1992: Gallup June 1992 General Election * Ross Perot 34% * George Bush 32% * Bill Clinton [...]
May 26th, 2008 at 8:09 pm
[...] I’d like to take comfort in points 1 and 2, there was a certain presidential candidate who was polling very poorly in 1992: Gallup June 1992 General Election * Ross Perot 34% * George Bush 32% * Bill Clinton [...]