New Lifetime Networks' Every Woman Counts Poll Takes Political Pulse of Women; As the Race Shifts, so do Women's Opinions of the Candidates, with Perception of Hillary Clinton Changing the Most

Results also provide insight into how women perceive the media's focus on Hillary Clinton's gender, Barack Obama's race and John McCain's age, and how Democrats feel about the ongoing battle between Obama and Clinton. In the three-way presidential race, Clinton garnered 27% of the vote, while Obama and McCain each netted 25%; 17% of voters remain unsure.

Lifetime's Every Woman Counts campaign, first launched in 1992 and now entering its fifth presidential election cycle, ensures that issues important to women are part of the campaign dialogue during election season; encourages women to run for public office; and motivates women to register and vote.

    Women's Opinions of Presidential Contenders in Flux.

    Hillary Clinton: Downward Trend Among One-Quarter of Women
    -- Hillary Clinton was the only candidate who registered a significant net
       change in public opinion since January: 26% of women surveyed said they
       like her less now compared to just 15% who said they like her more.
       Still, 55% said their opinion of Clinton has not changed.  Women who
       said they like Clinton more now largely pointed to aspects of her
       personality (67%) -- noting that she is tough or a fighter. Likewise,
       those whose opinion of her declined also pointed to her personal traits
       (67%) -- namely saying that she is dishonest.
    -- Six percent cited Bill Clinton as the reason their opinion of Hillary
       has improved; but more than double (15%) said their view of Senator
       Clinton declined because of her husband.

    John McCain: Split Opinion and Status Quo
    -- Six out of 10 (60%) women surveyed said their opinion of John McCain is
       not any different than it was a few months ago -- twice the number who
       changed their minds about him either for better (15%) or for worse
       (15%).  Those who reported that they like McCain more now generally
       pointed to his stance on the issues (46%). Likewise, women who are not
       as hot on McCain as they had been in January blamed his positions on
       the issues (42%).

    Barack Obama: A Wrong Turn on Wright
    -- Forty-five percent said their opinion of Barack Obama changed since the
       start of primary season, with 23% saying they like him more and 22%
       reporting they like him less now. Women who like him better now
       credited his personal characteristics (33%), followed closely by his
       stance on the issues (32%).  Reverend Jeremiah Wright (36%) was the
       most common justification given by those who now like Obama less.


    Gender, Race & Age: Is the Media Playing Nice or Nasty?

    Hillary Clinton
    -- Women were split as to whether the news coverage of Hillary Clinton has
       been impacted by her gender: 33% of women believe she is receiving
       negative treatment because she is a woman while 30% believe she is
       receiving positive coverage. Clinton's supporters were notably more
       likely to think she is being treated unfairly because she is a woman
       (43%).

    Barack Obama
    -- By a margin of two-to-one, women think Obama has been helped more than
       hurt by the media due to his race (41% versus 20%).  Hispanic women
       stood out as especially likely to believe Obama has benefited from his
       race (49%); whereas African-American women were more apt to believe he
       has gotten the short end of the media stick (30%).

    John McCain
    -- Women were nearly twice as likely to say John McCain has been hurt
       rather than helped by attention to his age (36% to 19%).

Obligations of Race and Gender: Do Women Feel Compelled to Elect the First Woman or First Black President?

    -- Twenty-two percent of women surveyed admitted that there was a part of
       them that felt they should vote for Hillary Clinton because she is a
       woman, but 17% said it was just a "small part" versus 5% who felt a
       stronger tinge. Obama's status as a racial minority was slightly less
       compelling to these women, 15% of whom said a part of them felt they
       should vote for him; 11% said a small part and 4% a big part.
    -- African-American women were only slightly more apt than most to say
       they felt they should vote for Obama (19% versus 15% overall).

Growing Weary of the Sniping: Democratic Supporters Weigh In on the Extended Primary Season; Few Women Want Obama or Clinton to Drop Out

   -- Few respondents want either Clinton or Obama to throw in the towel (13%
      and 7%, respectively) or are worried that the prolonged primary is
      hurting the party overall (11%)
   -- With the next important Democratic primary just days away, 29% of those
      who said they will support a Democratic candidate for president are
      "sick of the negative campaigning."  Still, 20% said they are glad for
      the lengthened season because it gives more people a say.  Another 19%
      worried about how the superdelegates would decide the race.


    Women Weigh In on the "Dream Ticket"

   -- Among those planning to cast a ballot for a Democrat, 49% said they
      would like to see Clinton pick Obama as her running mate while 46%
      thought Obama should put the former first lady on his ticket.
   -- There was a clear difference in the feelings of Clinton supporters and
      Obama backers:  48% of Clinton voters said they would like to see Obama
      as her running mate, while just 24% of those who plan to vote for Obama
      would like Clinton on his ticket.


    Dollars and Cents Driving Women's Vote.
   -- The economy and jobs is the #1 issue for women overall (38%), followed
      closely by health care, Medicare, and prescription drugs (31%) and the
      war in Iraq (28%).  Hillary Clinton supporters were equally likely to
      name economic issues and health care as most important, while Obama and
      McCain voters were more squarely focused on the economy and jobs.
   -- Four in 10 (42%) said their economic situation is worse now than it was
      one year ago, more than twice the 20%  who said they were better off.
      Another 38% say their situation is about the same.
   -- Clinton's supporters were much more likely to say their economic
      situation has gotten worse (55%), compared to 37% of Obama supporters
      and 27% of McCain voters.


    And the Oscar Goes to ... Meryl Streep

   -- Meryl Streep was named actress most fit to play the role of Hillary
      Clinton in a Lifetime movie (17%).  Actresses Glenn Close and Diane
      Keaton followed (both tied a


    How Will Women Vote April 22 in the Keystone State?

   -- Pennsylvanian women are poised for record turnout, with 94% reporting
      they will vote in the upcoming primary.  Roughly half of Pennsylvania
      women (53%) have definitely decided for whom they'll vote in the state's
      primary, but a significant proportion were still making their minds --
      15% said they are leaning toward a candidate and nearly one in five
      (18%) said they are still trying to decide.
   -- Among these women, 34% say they'll t 11%). go for Clinton, 29% for
      Obama, and 20% for McCain.

Methodology:

The scientific poll was conducted April 2-7, 2008. The sample was 500 women nationwide, with 100 additional women inPennsylvania, 100 additional African American women and 100 additional Hispanic women. The margin of error for the main sample is +/- 4.4% at a 95% confidence level. Margins of error for the subgroups are higher.

For more information about Every Woman Counts, go to everywomancounts08.com.

Every Woman Counts is the only public service campaign dedicated to encouraging women to speak out on the issues they care about most, vote and run for office. For the first time, the 2008 Every Woman Counts initiative will leverage the power of the #1 and #2 television networks' for women -- Lifetime and Lifetime Movie Network (LMN) -- and include the most extensive on-air programming, digital content and grassroots efforts to date. To expand the effort and reach women everywhere they live, work and play, Lifetime launched the first-ever Every Woman Counts media and advocacy coalition in partnership with REDBOOK, CosmoGIRL!, Marie Claire, celebrities, experts and hundreds of women's nonprofit organizations representing more than 15 million women from all sides of the political spectrum.

LIFETIME is the leader in women's television and one of the top-rated basic cable television networks. A diverse, multi-media company, LIFETIME is committed to offering the highest quality entertainment and information programming, and advocating a wide range of issues affecting women and their families. LIFETIME Television, Lifetime Movie Network, Lifetime Real Women and Lifetime Digital (including myLifetime.com) are part of LIFETIME Entertainment Services, a 50/50 joint venture of Hearst Corporation and The Walt Disney Company.

SOURCE Lifetime Networks

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Copyright © 2008, NewsBlaze, Daily News

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