John F. Kennedy is one of Republicans’ favorite Democrats. And John McCain is one of Democrats’ favorite Republicans.
That’s what we found when we asked Democratic and Republican voters in a rural North Carolina poll to name a politician in the other party they like or respect.
Two things stood out:
- It helps to be dead and gone.
- It helps to stand up to – and defy – your own party.
Democrats named McCain, Liz Cheney, Mitt Romney, Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan.
Also mentioned were George W. Bush, Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski and Dwight Eisenhower.
Republicans named JFK, Joe Manchin, John Fetterman, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard.
Other mentions: Jimmy Carter and Governor Josh Stein, who some Republicans praised for governing in a fair and balanced way and working across the aisle.
Our pollster, Stephen Clermont with Change Research, said Democrats “consistently reward Republicans who are willing to break with party orthodoxy and stand up to Trump.”
Also, “Lincoln and Reagan are invoked as examples of a GOP that was once about freedom, optimism, and country-first leadership — in contrast to the current party’s direction.”
Republicans “overwhelmingly name Democrats they see as centrist, pragmatic, and independent from party orthodoxy.”
Actually, RFK Jr. and Gabbard aren’t even Democrats any more. They’ve gone all in with Trump.
Republicans see JFK as “symbolizing the party when it was, in their view, more patriotic and less ‘woke’.”
Governor Stein is the rare political figure around today with any appeal across party lines.
That’s no small achievement in these polarized times.
