OnMessage, Inc., Predicted 2008 Elections

Mood of voters in 9 swing states held GOP "incompetent"

"He who cannot remember the past is doomed to repeat it."-
George Santayana

A year before the primary elections of 2008, Republican
pollster and strategist Wes Anderson called the tune.

He said the voters didn't know what, exactly, the Democratic
Party's plan for the future might be, "But they feel certain
that the Republicans have not gotten the job done and they
are willing to take a chance on the Democrats."

After an exhaustive survey of 1,200 voters in 12 Republican-
held Congressional Districts in 9 states, professionally
trained interviewers concluded that Congressional job
approval stood at 27 percent versus 67 percent disapproval.

"The voters of these swing districts did not simply vote for
change. They voted against what they perceive as
incompetence in the GOP-led Congress."

Democratic candidates, on the other hand, held an 11-point
lead with a voter approval of 48 percent to 37 percent
unfavorable.

President George W. Bush had a voter disapproval rate of 56
percent unfavorable over a 41 percent favorable perception
of his 8-year track record in the Oval Office.

Under the heading "The most glaring and stunning Republican
problem," the report read, was that 42 percent of those
polled chose the Democrats as the party most likely to cut
taxes on the middle class.

They chose Democrats 47 percent over 22 percent as the party
most likely to reduce the deficit.

Surveyors discovered that 38 percent of voters believed the
Democrats would be most likely to keep spending under
control, a 17-point edge over the 21 percent who chose the
Republicans as the party of fiscal responsibility.

A surprising 25 percent chose ending the war in Iraq as the
most pressing issue in their choice for a Congressional
candidate. Only 16 percent chose strengthening National
Security as a major criterion, while 13 percent indicated
getting spending under control as the most burning issue.

A mere 5 percent said the provision of tax relief was the
the most important factor.

The states surveyed included Congressional Districts in
Connecticut, two in Pennsylvania, New York, two in Indiana,
two in Ohio, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Florida and New Mexico.

On Message, Inc., provides polling services, strategy and
media consulting for Repubican candidates and Republican
state and national committees.