The insane partisan divide around fruitcake
Influential political polling firm Public Policy Polling has some new numbers out just in time for Christmas — and while they don't say a whole lot about Ted Cruz's gains on Donald Trump, PPP does offer some insight into the annual debate over if Die Hard can be considered a Christmas movie (62 percent say no).
The survey also tested the waters on fruitcake (only 38 percent of Americans "think fruitcake is good," with seniors and Republicans having a higher opinion of it than Dems and young voters) and checked if voters believe the Grinch's "rehabilitation at the end of the book/movie/TV special" is legitimate (only 13 percent of voters think so). PPP also points out that the Grinch's favorability rating is 18 percent, with 60 percent of voters seeing him "in a negative light."
"That gives [the Grinch] very similar poll numbers to Sen. Mitch McConnell, who we found yesterday [has] a 15/62 approval rating," PPP helpfully adds for context.
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When it comes to the important question of Santa's party affiliation, fewer voters than ever firmly believe he's a Democrat or a Republican. Only 28 percent think Father Christmas is a Democrat, and only 22 think he's a Republican; the rest aren't sure.
And finally, to the surprise of no one, Rudolph is everyone's favorite reindeer, leading with 46 percent of voters' support. Dasher follows with 9 percent, Prancer with 6, and the rest of the reindeer trail at 5 percent or below.
The PPP survey was conducted between Dec. 16 and 17, with 1,267 registered voters. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.8 percent.
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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