Polls

Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) has a strong lead over possible Democratic contenders in the race to succeed Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), according to a new poll.

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) would be an overwhelming favorite for reelection to the Senate next year, but Republicans would struggle to retain her seat if she opted to retire, according to a new poll released Thursday.

The survey from Democratic polling firm Public Policy Polling found that 63 percent of voters in Maine approve of the three-term senator, and she holds wide leads over the state's two House members. In a hypothetical head-to-head, Collins defeats Rep. Mike Michaud (D-Maine) 54-36 percent and Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) 58-33 percent. In either contest, Collins carries more than a third of self-identified Democrats and leads among independents by more than 20 percentage points.

But there are lurking dangers to Republican chances to hold the seat: the possibility that Collins retires or faces a Tea Party challenge from the right. While Collins has the approval of two-thirds of GOP voters, in a hypothetical primary matchup against a "more conservative" opponent, she leads only 49-46 percent. Three quarters of those who describe themselves as "very conservative" — the group most likely to vote in a Republican primary — say they would like to replace Collins.

A new survey indicates first-year college students have moderated their political views since 2008, with declining percentages calling themselves liberal and an increase in self-described "middle-of-the-road" youths since 2008.

The survey, conducted for the Cooperative Institutional Research Program among 192,912 freshman full-time students entering nearly 300 four-year colleges nationwide, shows that those describing themselves as "middle-of-the-road" increased by 4 percentage points since 2008. Liberal-identifying young people decreased by 4 percentage points for men, down to 26 percent, and 5 points for women, to 32 percent.

The number of youths identifying as conservative stayed largely steady since 2008, with 20 percent of women and about 26 percent of men identifying as conservative.

A new poll shows Clinton better poised than Biden to take the 2016 Democratic nomination.

According to the poll, 53 percent said they would want their congressman to vote in favor of Obama’s proposals.

Gallup and USA Today are splitting up after a 20 year polling relationship, the parties announced in separate statements released Friday.

Hillary Clinton will step down from her job as head of the State Department this month with nearly 70 percent of the country approving the job she’s done there, according to a new poll released Thursday.

The public’s support for tighter gun laws nearly matches Obama’s approval rating, with 55 percent saying they support stricter measures.

Surveys by Pew and Washington Post/ABC show support for background checks, an assault weapons ban and armed guards in schools.

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Outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (D) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) are the favorites to represent their respective parties in the 2016 presidential election, according to a survey released Thursday from Democratic firm Public Policy Polling.