Almost half of voters would be less inclined to vote for Donald Trump if he chose Sarah Palin as his running mate, according to a new poll by Monmouth University.
The poll shows how voters would react to six potential running mate choices for each presidential candidate. With 42 percent reacting negatively, the poll suggests that Palin would have the most negative impact on Trump’s presidential bid.
Patrick Murray, the director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute, said that vice presidential nominees “usually do not have a significant impact on the national electorate.” In assessing the importance of the choice of running mate, Murray stated, “At best, they can help with a specific constituency or in a key state. At worse, they can demonstrate poor decision-making on the part of a person who aspires to be leader of the free world.”
After Palin, the candidate with the most negative impact on Trump’s presidential bid was New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, with 28 percent of voters saying they would be less likely to vote for Trump if he chose Christie as his running mate. After Christie was former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich (26 percent), Florida Sen. Marco Rubio (20 percent), Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions (17 percent), and Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst (15 percent).
The former governor of Alaska was an early endorser of Trump, voicing her support in January, two weeks before the Iowa caucus. On July 1, Trump and Palin will together speak at the Western Conservative Summit in Denver, an event billed as the “largest gathering of conservatives outside of Washington D.C.”
The popular betting website PaddyPower.com puts Palin’s odds for being Trump’s vice presidential pick at 33 to one.
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