Poll: Most Voters Confident Vote Will Be Counted
Oct. 28, 2004-- -- The experience of 2000 hasn't soured most Americans on the mechanics of democracy, but still there are concerns: Just a quarter of likely voters are "very confident" that all votes across the nation will be counted properly.
Confidence, while not supreme, does exist: Despite the hanging chads of 2000 and this year's controversies over voting equipment, 91 percent are at least somewhat confident their own votes will be counted, and 70 percent have that level of confidence nationally.
It's in the highest level of confidence that doubt creeps in: While 91 percent are very or somewhat confident their own vote will be counted, 62 percent are "very" confident. And while 70 percent are very or somewhat confident all votes will be counted accurately, just 25 percent are "very" confident of that. Problems in some areas won't be a surprise -- especially to Democrats, among whom, given the 2000 outcome, confidence is lowest.
An accurate count matters especially in a close race, and the latest ABC News tracking poll fits the ticket: In interviews Sunday through Wednesday, 49 percent of likely voters support George W. Bush, 48 percent John Kerry and one percent Ralph Nader.
It was a similar division, 48-49 percent Bush-Kerry, in yesterday's tracking result. Kerry did particularly well in interviews last Saturday and Sunday, while Bush has done better in Monday through Wednesday interviews.
One difference is among "movable" voters, those who haven't definitely made up their minds. Movables are down to eight percent of all likely voters, from 14 percent at the start of the month. In tracking results Monday, they split by 42-41 percent between Bush and Kerry. Today it's 53-32 percent to Bush. ("Definites," by contrast, divide by 49-50 percent, Bush-Kerry, and have been quite stable in their preferences this week.)
Vote preferences among movables have shifted in the past; one key question is who gets them for keeps. Another is how many of them actually turn out, given their comparatively low attention to the contest.
The race is somewhat tighter among young voters, aged 18 to 29; Kerry still leads in this group, but by less of a margin than during the weekend. Young voters account for a disproportionate share of movables.
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