Poll: 30% of Republicans Won't Vote for Christie, 50% of All Voters Reject Jeb Bush

A new poll suggests Republican New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie will have problems with Republican primary voters should he choose to run for president in 2016, while Jeb Bush will face steep barriers in a potential general election. 

A Washington Post-ABC News poll released on Thursday found that “three in 10 of all Republicans say they would not vote for” Christie in 2016. Among voters who described themselves as “conservative,” 35% said they would not vote for Christie.

Since the beginning of Christie’s Bridgegate scandal, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has been considering running, but the poll found that 50% of registered voters “definitely would not” vote for him in a general election, putting into doubt the GOP establishment’s claim that Jeb Bush is one of the most electable Republicans. 

As the Post noted, the overall findings also “underscore the degree to which the contest for the GOP nomination in 2016 is as wide open as any in the modern era.” After Christie, Republicans and conservatives were most dissatisfied with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. 

The poll was conducted February 27-March 2 and has a margin of error of +/- 3.5 percentage points.