New PRRI/Brookings Poll: Clinton maintains double-digit lead, Americans okay with personal immorality in public officials

A new PRRI/Brookings Survey released today finds Hillary Clinton holds a 15-point lead over Donald Trump among likely voters, including a 16-point lead among independent likely voters (46 percent vs. 30 percent).

Female likely voters continue to prefer Clinton to Trump by a margin of nearly two to one (57 percent vs. 31 percent), while male likely voters are evenly divided, a stark reversal from last week when Trump held an advantage over Clinton (48 percent vs. 37 percent).

Nearly seven in ten (69 percent) white evangelical Protestant likely voters support Trump over Clinton, consistent with support over the last two weeks. A plurality (49 percent) of white mainline Protestant likely voters also support Trump. Catholic voters overall favor Clinton by a considerable margin (57 percent vs. 33 percent), while white Catholic likely voters are evenly divided (44 percent each).

There is also a double-digit gap (12 points) among congressional vote choice, with a majority (52 percent) of likely voters supporting Democratic congressional candidates and 40 percent saying they will vote Republican.

The survey also finds that, compared to 2011, many Americans have changed their minds about whether personal immorality is disqualifying for elected officials. Sixty-one percent of Americans say immoral personal behavior does not preclude public officials from carrying out their public or professional duties with honesty and integrity. In 2011, only 44 percent of Americans said the same. No group has shifted more on this issue than white evangelical Protestants. Today, 72 percent say an elected official can behave ethically even if they have committed transgressions in their personal life—a 42-point jump from 2011, when only 30 percent agreed.

Read the entire analysis here: https://www.prri.org/research/prri-brookings-october-19-2016-presidential-election-horserace-clinton-trump/.

Read the topline questionnaire, including survey methodology: https://www.prri.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/AVS-2016-Supplement-Topline.pdf.