In the polls

Published July 8, 2004 9:42PM (EDT)

The first wave polls just following the Democratic veep announcement don't agree on how big a bounce Kerry is going to get from his new running mate. The latest from Zogby International shows the Kerry-Edwards team basically even with Bush-Cheney, 48 to 46 percent.

But an NBC News poll also taken after the Edwards announcement shows Kerry-Edwards with a sizable bounce, beating Bush-Cheney 49 to 41 percent -- even with Nader-Camejo taking 4 percent.

Plus, a new CBS News poll shows widespread approval of John Kerry's new running mate. 53 percent of all voters and 69 percent of Democrats surveyed said they were glad that Edwards was chosen. Wait for larger polls with smaller margins of error -- and more time for the Edwards choice to really sink in with voters -- to bring the horserace into focus.

And the Drudge Report linked to a poll that seemingly contradicts John Kerry's joking observation yesterday that he and John Edwards have "better hair" than their opponents. According to the Wahl Clipper Corporation's 2004 Grooming Survey, the president is beating Kerry on the hair front. 50 percent of respondents to the grooming survey preferred Bush's flattened part to the more ostentatious pouf of John Kerry's do. And they're saying the veep pick won't matter in November.


By Stephen W. Stromberg

Stephen W. Stromberg is a former editorial fellow at Salon.

MORE FROM Stephen W. Stromberg


Related Topics ------------------------------------------

War Room