March 1, 2016
With voters across Texas casting their ballots today, we thought it would be useful to see what different groups of voters are prioritizing when making their ultimate decision. To do this, we asked likely primary voters in each party, "What's most important: picking the candidate best prepared to...," and gave them nine response options meant to illicit the major themes and arguments of the 2016 primary elections for both the Democrats and the Republicans. Below are the results for likely Republican Primary voters; corresponding graphics for Democrats can be found here.
Overall:
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| category | |
|---|---|
| Improve the American economy | 21% |
| Give the Republican Party a good chance to win in November | 20% |
| Shake up politics-as-usual | 15% |
| Reform immigration policy | 14% |
| Fight terrorism | 10% |
| Defend my faith and religious values | 9% |
| Improve America's standing in the world | 7% |
| Work to guarantee equal rights for all groups in society | 2% |
| Address economic inequality in the country | 2% |
Relevant Sub-groups of Voters:
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| category | Lean Republican | Not very strong Republican | Strong Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Improve the American economy | 25% | 23% | 21% |
| Give the Republican Party a good chance to win in November | 15% | 23% | 26% |
| Shake up politics-as-usual | 23% | 16% | 8% |
| Reform immigration policy | 13% | 10% | 16% |
| Fight terrorism | 5% | 11% | 13% |
| Defend my faith and religious values | 9% | 8% | 7% |
| Improve America's standing in the world | 9% | 8% | 4% |
| Work to guarantee equal rights for all groups in society | 2% | 0% | 3% |
| Address economic inequality in the country | 0% | 1% | 2% |
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| category | Liberals | Moderates | Conservatives |
|---|---|---|---|
| Improve the American economy | 9% | 19% | 22% |
| Give the Republican Party a good chance to win in November | 9% | 17% | 21% |
| Shake up politics-as-usual | 6% | 15% | 15% |
| Reform immigration policy | 0% | 14% | 14% |
| Fight terrorism | 27% | 12% | 10% |
| Defend my faith and religious values | 19% | 8% | 9% |
| Improve America's standing in the world | 6% | 8% | 7% |
| Work to guarantee equal rights for all groups in society | 0% | 4% | 1% |
| Address economic inequality in the country | 23% | 3% | 1% |
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| category | Leaning conservative | Somewhat conservative | Extremely conservative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Improve the American economy | 31% | 22% | 17% |
| Give the Republican Party a good chance to win in November | 19% | 22% | 22% |
| Shake up politics-as-usual | 15% | 13% | 19% |
| Reform immigration policy | 4% | 19% | 13% |
| Fight terrorism | 8% | 11% | 10% |
| Defend my faith and religious values | 4% | 7% | 14% |
| Improve America's standing in the world | 13% | 6% | 4% |
| Work to guarantee equal rights for all groups in society | 3% | 0% | 3% |
| Address economic inequality in the country | 5% | 0% | 0% |
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| category | Democrat | Republican | Tea Party |
|---|---|---|---|
| Improve the American economy | 3% | 25% | 20% |
| Give the Republican Party a good chance to win in November | 5% | 24% | 13% |
| Shake up politics-as-usual | 23% | 9% | 27% |
| Reform immigration policy | 24% | 13% | 15% |
| Fight terrorism | 12% | 9% | 11% |
| Defend my faith and religious values | 0% | 6% | 9% |
| Improve America's standing in the world | 5% | 9% | 5% |
| Work to guarantee equal rights for all groups in society | 17% | 2% | 0% |
| Address economic inequality in the country | 11% | 3% | 0% |
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| category | Urban | Suburban | Rural |
|---|---|---|---|
| Improve the American economy | 26% | 18% | 22% |
| Give the Republican Party a good chance to win in November | 23% | 22% | 15% |
| Shake up politics-as-usual | 12% | 14% | 21% |
| Reform immigration policy | 20% | 11% | 15% |
| Fight terrorism | 8% | 12% | 9% |
| Defend my faith and religious values | 3% | 10% | 11% |
| Improve America's standing in the world | 2% | 9% | 7% |
| Work to guarantee equal rights for all groups in society | 3% | 2% | 0% |
| Address economic inequality in the country | 3% | 2% | 1% |
Among the Candidate Coalitions:
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| category | Among Ted Cruz Supporters |
|---|---|
| Improve the American economy | 19% |
| Give the Republican Party a good chance to win in November | 20% |
| Shake up politics-as-usual | 18% |
| Reform immigration policy | 12% |
| Fight terrorism | 13% |
| Defend my faith and religious values | 10% |
| Improve America's standing in the world | 7% |
| Address economic inequality in the country | 2% |
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| category | Among Donald Trump Supporters |
|---|---|
| Improve the American economy | 27% |
| Give the Republican Party a good chance to win in November | 13% |
| Shake up politics-as-usual | 18% |
| Reform immigration policy | 20% |
| Fight terrorism | 9% |
| Defend my faith and religious values | 3% |
| Improve America's standing in the world | 5% |
| Work to guarantee equal rights for all groups in society | 2% |
| Address economic inequality in the country | 3% |
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| category | Among Marco Rubio Supporters |
|---|---|
| Improve the American economy | 22% |
| Give the Republican Party a good chance to win in November | 37% |
| Shake up politics-as-usual | 2% |
| Reform immigration policy | 13% |
| Fight terrorism | 8% |
| Defend my faith and religious values | 5% |
| Improve America's standing in the world | 13% |
| Work to guarantee equal rights for all groups in society | 1% |