Hillary Clinton holds huge lead over the potential Democratic field despite the escalating controversy surrounding her use of a private email address, a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll shows.
Eighty-six percent of Democrats said they could see themselves supporting Clinton for president, compared to just 13 percent who said they could not. The margin of 73 percentage points was significantly higher than that of both Vice President Biden, who had a margin of 14 points, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who had a margin of 34 points.
Clinton’s favorability ratings have also stood firm from January, before the email flap began. She’s viewed positively by 44 percent of adults and negatively by 36 percent. The poll surveyed people over the course of five days, three of which were after The New York Times broke the story on her private email use.
The controversy surrounding Clinton’s emails from her time as secretary of State has dominated the news cycle as pundits and politicians criticize her for fostering a culture of secrecy.
The House Select Committee on Benghazi has subpoenaed Clinton’s emails, and Republicans have taken to cable news to deride her for not explaining why she used the private accounts, which shielded her emails from records laws.
This week, two longtime Democratic senators, Sens. Dianne Feinstein (Calif.) and Dick Durbin (Ill.), both called on her to publicly address the situation.
While Clinton has not made any public comments outside of a tweet, she’s expected to address the media Tuesday.