Voters see Hillary and Jeb as old hat

A majority of voters see 2016 frontrunners Hillary Clinton (D) and former Fla. Gov. Jeb Bush (R) as a “return to the policies of the past,” according to a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll that shows the potential perils for each party’s biggest names. 

Fifty one percent of registered voters view Clinton’s policies as retreads of the past, but she’s viewed much more favorably with Democrats. Only twenty three percent hold that view, and 73 percent believe she’ll provide “new ideas for the future.” 

{mosads}Bush’s numbers aren’t as strong. Sixty percent of registered voters, and 42 percent of Republicans, see his policies as leaning backwards. 

Bush has been criticized by some conservatives for his support of Common Core education standards and for a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants. Both policies got poor marks from Republicans in the voters, as more than half of them view those positions unfavorably. 

Recently, Bush has said he only supports a pathway to legal status, but has expressed support for a pathway to citizenship in the past. 

The poll also showed largely positive perceptions of Gov. Scott Walker (R-Wis.) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). Fifty three percent of voters said they could back Walker, compared to only 17 percent that said they could not. Fifty six percent said they could support Rubio, while 26 percent could not. 

Those two candidates sported the largest margins of potential support. Bush had only seven percentage points between those who said they could support him and those who couldn’t. Donald Trump, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Gov. Chris Christie (R-N.J.) all had significantly more voters say they could not back them. 

Clinton fared much better with Democrats, as 86 percent said they could see themselves voting for her, leaps and bounds ahead of the potential support for Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Vice President Joe Biden. And more than half of those Democratic voters said they don’t care whether Clinton receives a coronation or a contested primary. 

The poll surveyed 1,000 adults and has an overall margin of error of 3.1 percent. The Democratic primary sample has a 6.1 percentage point margin, and the GOP primary sample has a 6.5 percentage point margin.