A majority of voters in three key swing states saying the former Secretary of State and Senator Hillary Clinton is not honest, according to a new poll by Quinnipiac University.
But Clinton comes out ahead — or is in a statistical tie — over nearly all potential GOP contenders for the 2016 presidential races.
Quinnipiac’s most recent poll largely dovetails with one issued in March, which showed that questions over her use of a private email server while she was serving as Secretary of State had caused some voters to be wary of her. The Qunnipiac Swing State Poll surveys voters in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Florida because no presidential contender has taken the White House without winning two of these three.
“Most of the with GOP hopefuls are within striking distance of Secretary Hillary Clinton in at least one of the three states. In Ohio, Gov. Kasich leads,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac Poll. “But perhaps more troubling for her than the continuing slide is how she is perceived by voters, who continue to say she is not honest and trustworthy.” In Ohio, former Gov. John Kasich leads Clinton 47 to 40, but in hypothetical matchups in Florida and Pennsylvania, Clinton trounces him.
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has also emerged as a strong contender. He tops Clinton 47 to 43 in his home state, and noses past Clinton 44 to 43 in Pennsylvania. Clinton is three points ahead in Ohio.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has a respectable showing in Pennsylvania, where Clinton has a 43-41 advantage. But in Ohio and Florida, Christie’s showing can’t break out of the 30-percent range. Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul bests Clinton 45 to 44 in Pennsylvania — that’s within the margin of error. He’s also tied in Ohio, but trails in Florida.
One other side note from the poll: 62 percent of voters in Ohio and Florida, and 59 percent in Pennsylvania have an unfavorable view of Donald Trump. About 15 percent of the people polled say they don’t know much about him….. The poll was conducted June 4 to June 15. The poll contains a 3 percent margin of error in Florida, a 2.8 percent margin in Ohio and a 3.2 percent margin in Pennsylvania.