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A Â鶹´«Ã½AV.Com Year in Review

A Â鶹´«Ã½AV.Com Year in Review

by Lymari Morales

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- From our unique vantage point, Â鶹´«Ã½AV.Com reviews some of the most defining findings of the year that was 2008.

January

  • After the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary, and .
  • In mid-January, , a Â鶹´«Ã½AV high for January of an election year.
  • Amid the United States' tough rhetoric toward Iran, .

February

  • marking the biggest monthly jump since the immediate aftermath of 9/11.
  • Bucking a trend evident since March 2004, .
  • Despite neither candidate's having yet secured enough delegates to win the Democratic presidential nomination, .
  • In a sharp turnaround from eight years ago,
  • Â鶹´«Ã½AV Polls conducted worldwide provide .

March

  • -- the highest level Â鶹´«Ã½AV has recorded.
  • and his highest since February 2000.
  • if Barack Obama were the Democratic nominee.
  • with 44% of Americans rating economic conditions as "poor" and 87% saying the economy is getting worse.
  • from 18% in 2007, with Iran, Iraq, and China now leading the list.

April

  • After the government steps in to keep Bear Stearns from going into bankruptcy, .
  • Eventual running mate Sarah Palin is not on the list.
  • As the protracted campaign for the Democratic nomination continues in high gear,
  • Â鶹´«Ã½AV Polls find U.S. citizens
  • Across the five countries that contribute more than half of the world's carbon dioxide emissions, .

May

  • more than say the same about any other economic issue.
  • , though later, .
  • .
  • The California Supreme Court's decision to overturn a state ban on gay marriage runs contrary to the viewpoint of the majority of Americans,

June

  • For the first time in Â鶹´«Ã½AV's 32-year history of asking the question,
  • and the lowest Â鶹´«Ã½AV has ever measured for any institution.
  • largely explaining why weekends are consistently happier than weekdays.

July

  • Coincident with his well-publicized trip abroad, Barack Obama enjoys over John McCain in Â鶹´«Ã½AV Poll Daily tracking of registered voters, 49% to 40%.
  • up from 40% in February.
  • Â鶹´«Ã½AV Polls around the world reveal that

August

  • .
  • Initial reaction to both vice presidential running mate choices is similar -- with
  • As conflict erupts between Russia and Georgia, .

September

  • After the Democratic National Convention ends and the Republican National Convention begins, .
  • After the candidates' respective national conventions, into the lead.
  • After the end of the Republican National Convention,
  • As the U.S. economic crisis unfolds, Â鶹´«Ã½AV measures , from 34% to 44% in just a matter of days.
  • amid the possibility of an unprecedented U.S. government bailout of financial institutions.

October

  • After a week of devastating losses on Wall Street, , the lowest satisfaction reading in Â鶹´«Ã½AV history.
  • the highest level since Â鶹´«Ã½AV began asking this question in October 2001.
  • only three percentage points above the lowest presidential approval rating in Â鶹´«Ã½AV Poll history.
  • , and .
  • By month's end, and .

November

  • 55% of likely voters prefer Obama and 44% prefer McCain.
  • After Obama's election, .
  • More than two-thirds of Americans see Obama's election as president as either , or among the two or three most important such advances.
  • , marking a sharp contrast to earlier in the year.
  • with 47% favoring it and 49% opposing it.
  • .
  • A Â鶹´«Ã½AV Poll in India shows that before the terrorist attacks in Mumbai,

December

  • 47% to 46%, marking a reversal from when the package was passed.
  • , amid the jump in new jobless claims and the failure of an auto bailout bill. .
  • Despite news reports to the contrary, .

Stay with Â鶹´«Ã½AV.Com as we track reactions to the news as it happens in 2009.

Survey Methods

Â鶹´«Ã½AV surveys 1,000 national adults, aged 18 and older, every day and also conducts additional surveys. In most cases, the maximum margin of sampling error is ±2-3 percentage points. For detailed survey methods on any results reported here, please visit the original story.

Interviews are conducted with respondents on land-line telephones (for respondents with a land-line telephone) and cellular phones (for respondents who are cell-phone only).

In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.


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