A new Rasmussen poll suggests that Republicans may be regaining the confidence of the Tea Party crowd, and that the appeal of a third-party political force could be wearing off.
Rasmussen asked this question, which was previously done in December: “Suppose the Tea Party organized itself as a political party. When thinking about the next election for Congress, would you vote for the Republican candidate from your district, the Democratic candidate from your district or the Tea Party candidate from your district?”
Two months ago, the result was Democrats 36%, Tea Party 23%, Republicans 18%. The answer this time around is Democrats 36%, Republicans 25%, and Tea Party 17%.
The pollster’s analysis finds that Republicans are getting some voters back, in this hypothetical scenario. However, the gain for the GOP is chiefly among self-described Republican voters — independents are still up for grabs:
Shifts in voting by Republicans and voters not affiliated with either party are key to the Tea Party’s new third-place showing. In December, 39% of GOP voters went for their party’s candidate, but 33% opted for the Tea Party. Now, 48% of Republicans are sticking with the GOP, and just 23% favor the Tea Party candidate.
Among unaffiliated, 33% supported the Tea Party congressional candidate in December. Now, only 23% are voting that way. Interestingly, however, most of that shift seems to go into the undecided category rather than into support for the Republican.
