Spencer Platt/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — This year’s election presents a choice between two of the least popular presidential candidates in recorded history. But with just over two weeks to go until Election Day, the gap in enthusiasm for Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump is widening as excitement for the Republican tempers.
The most recent ABC News poll of likely voters shows Clinton gaining in reports affirmative support — the number of backers voting for her rather than in opposition of Trump. Meanwhile, 54 percent of Trump’s supporters say they are driven more so by their stance against Clinton.
The decrease in zeal among Trump supporters could be related to voters’ opinions of how the businessman has handled recent scandals plaguing his campaign. Throughout the month of October, Trump has combated controversies over the release of a video showing him making lewd statements about women and multiple sexual assault accusations ranging as far back as the 1980s.
In the ABC News poll, conducted from October 20-22, 69 percent of likely voters reported disapproval in how Trump is handling questions about his treatment of women.
Trump previously defended his derogatory comments captured on a 2005 video as “locker room banter” and surrogate Rudy Giuliani defended the candidate, saying, “The fact is men, at times, talk like that.” But men reported almost equal levels of dismay in Trump’s actions — 67 percent of male respondents disapproved of how he responded to the situation.
Another possible explanation for diminishing excitement about the real estate mogul’s candidacy could be his performance in the presidential debates. Those answering the ABC News poll felt that Clinton won the final debate by a margin of 52-29 percent. Independent voters — who are more likely to use the debates to help them select a candidate — favored Clinton in last week’s debate 48-28 percent.
An additional factor possibly affecting voter enthusiasm appears to be Trump’s claims that the election is “rigged.” Trump has repeatedly raised concerns of voter fraud and intimidation during campaign rallies and, during the final debate, refused to guarantee he would respect the results of the election or concede to Clinton, should she win.
While views of Trump’s position on voter fraud are highly split on party lines — only 7 percent of Democratic likely voters view fraud as a legitimate concern — a majority of Independents view Trump’s stance in a negative light, as do some Republicans.
Fifty-seven percent of independents, and even 23 percent of Republicans, view Trump’s talk of fraud as a way to hedge a potential loss to Clinton on election day. While this opinion alone likely wouldn’t swing Trump supporters to Clinton’s side, the view of Trump as a possible poor loser could certainly contribute to the waning reports of enthusiasm.
Sixty-five percent of independents and 34 percent of Republicans also disapprove of Trump’s indication that he may not accept the election’s results.
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