2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: Just a thought and requesting input from all sides. [View all]firebrand80
(2,760 posts)I think we're in a political environment where "hating the other side" is prominent. In previous cycles, respectful disagreement was more of the socially acceptable position, that is, people would be more likely to say that they like and respect someone they would never vote for. We're much more Balkanized these days.
So I think we're going to see higher negatives than we've seen in the past for all major Presidential candidates, simply because the other side is more likely to say they have a negative impression.
The only Presidential candidates that are escaping high negatives at this point are Kasich and Sanders, the ones that are precieved as having a very low chance of winning their party's nomination. If either of them were to win, those numbers would undoubtedly go higher as the campaign wore on.
This doesn't completely explain Hillary's high negatives, but I think it's a big part of the picture.