Kerry’s Image Sinking

The Associated Press reports that, according to the University of Pennsylvania’s National Annenberg Election Survey, John Kerry’s image has taken a beating in recent weeks. In mid-March, 40 percent of respondents expressed a favorable view and 24 percent had an unfavorable view of Kerry. In poll data released this afternoon, Kerry’s numbers were down to 38 percent favorable and 33 percent unfavorable. Worse, in 18 battleground states, Kerry was viewed favorably by only 35 percent, with 36 percent expressing an unfavorable opinion.
President Bush’s numbers in the same Annenberg survey were 51 percent favorable and 37 percent unfavorable.
The AP attributes this decline to the Bush campaign’s advertising, which is not an unreasonable inference given the battleground state results. But I suspect that much of the decline results from voters’ increasing exposure to Kerry.

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