Defense

Poll: ISIS now top issue for Republican voters

by Kristina Wong - 10/15/14 10:02 AM ET

U.S. military action against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is now the top issue for Republican voters in the midterm elections, according to a Wednesday survey.

In a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, 41 percent of Republicans said ISIS was the most important issue in deciding their vote, compared to just 18 percent of Democrats.

{mosads}Democrats still rank economic growth as their top issue, followed by breaking partisan gridlock in Washington, healthcare, social security, and then ISIS, according to the poll.

With the election less than three weeks away, Republicans on the campaign trail have seized on President Obama’s struggles against ISIS to hammer vulnerable Democrats.

The majority of Americans, 55 percent, disapprove of the president’s handling of the crisis.

A larger majority of Americans, at 61 percent, say military action against ISIS is in the national interest.

The poll also shows a 7-percent increase in support for using ground troops in Iraq and Syria from one month ago, up to 41 percent. And fewer say U.S. actions should be limited to airstrikes only, down 5 percent from a month ago to 35 percent.

Only 15 percent said the U.S. should not take any military action at all against ISIS.

Still, 66 percent of Americans say the Iraq War wasn’t worth fighting, including 49 percent of Republicans who support more action against ISIS.

2024 Election Coverage

The NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll of 1,000 registered voters was conducted October 8-12 by Fred Yang of Hart Research Associates (D) and Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies (R). It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

–This report was updated on Oct. 16 at 9:03 a.m.

Tags