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Primary Voters Prize Ideology Over Electability

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“As party primaries kick off ahead of the pivotal battle for control of Congress this fall, Democrats — and especially Republicans — say they are prioritizing ideological alignment instead of electability when they pick candidates,” according to a new national NBC News poll.

“Seven in 10 Republican primary voters prefer a candidate who comes closest to their views, while 27% prefer a candidate who has a better chance of winning the general election.”

“Democratic primary voters were more evenly split on the question: 56% say they prefer the candidate closest to their views, while 42% want a candidate more electable in a general election.”

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About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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