Americans have a more negative than positive immediate reaction to Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s comments, secretly caught on video, about the 47% of Americans whom he said are Obama supporters and dependent on the government.
Thirty-six percent of voters say Romney’s comments make them less likely to vote for him, while 20% say the remarks make them more likely to vote for him, and 43% say the comments won’t make a difference. …
A substantial majority of Americans have already made up their minds about their vote choice, so it is likely that many of those who claim to be “more likely” or “less likely” to vote for Romney are, in essence, indicating that the comments reinforced their pre-existing vote choice. …
But independents — voters who are, by definition, less fixed in their partisanship — tilt toward the “less likely” over the “more likely” view by a 29% to 15% margin — although more than half say Romney’s comments make no difference. [cont.]
Frank Newport, Gallup