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Americans Want Obama to Be Bipartisan
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Most adults in the United States want their president-elect to look beyond his own party when he assembles his cabinet, according to a poll by GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media released by the Associated Press. 73 per cent of respondents want Barack Obama to appoint some qualified Republicans to important posts in his administration.
In American elections, candidates require 270 votes in the Electoral College to win the White House. On Nov. 4, Democratic nominee Obama secured a majority of electoral votes, defeating Republican candidate John McCain. Obama will become the first African American president in U.S. history when he takes over from George W. Bush—who served two four-year terms—on Jan. 20, 2009.
On Nov. 17, Obama and McCain met in Chicago. The two issued a joint statement, which read: "At this defining moment in history, we believe that Americans of all parties want and need their leaders to come together and change the bad habits of Washington so that we can solve the common and urgent challenges of our time. (...) We hope to work together in the days and months ahead on critical challenges like solving our financial crisis, creating a new energy economy, and protecting our nation’s security."
Polling Data
Do you think Barack Obama should appoint some qualified Republicans to important posts in his administration, or do you think he should only appoint Democrats to those positions?
|
Some Republicans |
73% |
|
Only Democrats |
15% |
|
Unsure |
12% |
Source: GfK Roper Public Affairs & Media / Associated Press
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,001 American adults, conducted from Nov. 6 to Nov. 10, 2008. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.