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Without 'Rodham,' Hillary Sinks
It sounds silly, but when "Hillary Clinton" is matched up against Sen. John McCain in a hypothetical presidential election, she loses by a single percentage point. But if pollsters refer to her as "Hillary Rodham Clinton," she trounces the Arizona Republican by 7 percentage points. According to an Opinion Research Corp poll conducted for CNN, which asked 506 adult Americans whom they preferred among potential 2008 presidential candidates, they chose Hillary Rodham Clinton to McCain by a 51 percent to 44 percent. But when the "Rodham" name was dropped, McCain had a 1 percentage point advantage, 48 percent to 47 percent.
It doesn't quite work if her opponent is former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. Even though Clinton has an advantage over Giuliani with or without her maiden name, using "Rodham" tightens the race. Asked if they prefer "Hillary Clinton" or Giuliani, Clinton had a 4 percentage point advantage, 50 percent to 46 percent. But add "Rodham" and Clinton's edge over the former NYC mayor drops to 1 percentage point, 48 percent to 47 percent.
Keating Holland, CNN's polling director, said that the results are meaningless because the election is still two years away and no poll can accurately predict a race that far in advance. Moreover Clinton has always appeared on the ballot using her middle name, and there is no sign that she intends to abandon it in future elections.
Story Continues Below The results are consistent with earlier testing that indicated Clinton's favorability rose when her maiden name was included in the question, Holland added.
Editor's note:
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