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Republican voters are far more likely than Democrats to vote for outsider candidates as anti-establishment sentiment has so far prevailed in the 2016 election cycle, a new poll said on Monday.
While 72 percent of Americans say politicians cannot be trusted and 64 percent describe the U.S. political system as "basically dysfunctional," the majority of Americans still prefer political experience to outsider status by 56-40 percent, according to the ABC News/Washington Post poll.
However, views of outsider status are sharply divided along the partisan lines.
Among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents, 69 percent prefer experience to outsider status. Among leaned Republicans, by contrast, only 36 percent choose experience over outsider status with 60 percent preferring an outsider.
So far, both Donald Trump and Ben Carson, two non-politician Republican candidates, have tapped into the anti-establishment sentiment and surged far above other rivals in poll numbers.
Among registered voters, 33 percent of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents now favor Trump, the New York billionaire developer, for nomination, with 20 percent for retired neuro-surgeon Carson.
By contrast, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, who used to lead the crowded Republican field at 21 percent in March, crumpled to 8 percent.
In the much smaller Democratic field, the anti-establishment sentiment also helps Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders in the poll number, but only to a less extent.
According to the ABC/Washington Post poll, Sanders has so far gained 10 points since July to 24 percent, while the Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton's support dropped by a third to 42 percent.
However, the slump in poll numbers for Clinton is less likely a result of anti-establishment sentiment than the mounting controversy around Clinton's email practices.
The poll said that 55 percent of Americans disapprove of Clinton's handling of the issue, 54 percent think she has tried to cover it up and 51 percent think she broke federal regulations by using a private email setup while serving as the top diplomat of the country.
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden also garnered 21 percent of support despite his recent hesitation about launching a presidency bid.
However, the poll said if Biden doesn't run, most of his support will move to Clinton, not Sanders. Enditem
