Paula Deen was roundly criticized earlier this summer for her past use of the N-word, but among Georgia Republicans, the embattled celebrity evidently has more fans than America’s most beloved civil rights icon.
Democratic-leaning Public Policy Polling tweeted out a striking nugget on Wednesday from its survey of the Peach State. According to the pollster, Deen is more popular among Republican voters in Georgia than Martin Luther King:
Favorability ratings with Georgia Republicans: Paula Deen 73/11, Martin Luther King Jr. 59/28
— PublicPolicyPolling (@ppppolls) August 7, 2013
Although she faced plenty of criticism for her use of racial epithets, Deen also drew her share of defenders. A Fox News contributor claimed Deen, a Georgia native, was being mistreated by the “liberal, anti-South media.” Following the controversy, her forthcoming cookbook, “Paula Deen’s New Testament,” surged to the top of Amazon’s best-sellers list.