America Has Spoken

NEW YORK, November 16, 2000- Under the current electoral system, America is statistically deadlocked on what should ultimately determine the presidency if one candidate wins the popular vote and another captures the Electoral College, according to a national poll conducted recently by George magazine and Ipsos-Reid, a leading market research firm. 48% of Americans polled said the winner of the popular vote should be the commander-in-chief, while 45% gave the title to the victor of the Electoral College (which is a statistical tie).

And no matter who ultimately is crowned president, Americans say education should be the highest priority for the Oval Office, as well as Congress. Health care, social security, the economy, the reduction of taxes, restoring values, strengthening the military, the environment, and campaign finance reform should follow (in that particular order) as the next highest priorities.

In such a tight presidential race, with a narrowly divided Congress, 63% of Americans say they are "very" or "somewhat" concerned about the effect a gridlocked or partisan federal government will have on the country. Women express more concern than men, as well as seniors over younger citizens.

AMERICA HAS SPOKEN

When asked whether or not they would support legislation banning "soft money" donations to specific political campaigns, 66% said they would; 30% disagreed. Further, when asked if they would support expanding Medicare to cover the cost of prescription drugs if it meant paying slightly higher taxes, 69% of Americans polled said yes.

Finally, while the nation currently appears to be engrossed in the drama of who will capture the White House, an overwhelming majority of Americans polled said they had contributed neither time nor money during this November's election. When broken down by age, the highest percentage of non-contributors was among those between 18 and 34.

The results of the poll were collected by Ipsos-Reid EXPRESS. Poll results were based on 1000 telephone interviews conducted with a random sample of American adults (18+) during the weekend of November 10-12. The sample was carefully controlled to ensure accurate regional and demographic representation. The margin of error is +-3%. Results based on smaller subgroups have a larger potential for sampling error.

Founded in 1995, George is the nation's largest political magazine. Circulation has risen 25 percent in the past year to 500,000. The magazine, published 10 times annually by Hachette Filipacchi Magazines, commands a total audience of nearly 2.5 million.

Ipsos-Reid has been tracking public opinion around the world for more than 20 years and has become a leading provider of global public opinion and market research to private, public and not-for-profit organizations in over 50 countries. It is a member of Paris-based Ipsos Group, ranked among the top ten research groups in the world.

Contacts:

Dianne Milton, George 212-767-6117 or Edward Morawski, Ipsos-Reid 212-584-9270