Poll: Post-Palin Conservatives Far More Enthusiastic Than in 2004

In a stunning turn-around, a new poll taken after Sarah Palin's nomination as Vice President shows that grassroots conservatives overwhelmingly support John McCain for president at levels that may eclipse conservative enthusiasm in the 2004 presidential election!

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The poll, conducted by Grassfire.org, found that 62% of conservatives now say they are "more enthusiastic" about the 2008 elections than 2004 -- a complete reversal from May when the same question found that those "less enthusiastic" outnumbered the more enthusiastic by a 3-to-1 margin. "Given the angst conservatives have felt over the past two years, this change toward McCain by conservatives is both swift and stunning," says Grassfire.org President Steve Elliott whose organization conducted a scientific random sample of its 1 million team members on September 8-9 for the poll. Additionally, the survey also found that 93% of conservatives plan on voting for McCain (up from 67% in May), and 48% will volunteer and/or contribute (up from 24% in May). The difference? Sarah Palin. The survey found that 92% of conservative are "more enthusiastic" about McCain because of his choice of Palin as his running mate. "Clearly, it wasn't enough for conservatives to oppose Obama or Clinton; they wanted a positive reason to support McCain," says Elliott. "Palin is making this possible." Key Findings Summary: -- 93% of conservatives plan on voting for McCain (up from 67% in May) -- 92% of conservatives are "more enthusiastic" about McCain due to the Palin announcement -- 48% of conservatives will volunteer time and/or donate to McCain (up from 24% in May) -- 62% of conservatives are "more enthusiastic" about 2008 elections than 2004 while just 12% are less enthusiastic (a reversal from May when 20% were more enthusiastic and 61% less) -- 88% of conservatives think McCain will win, up from (up from 61% in May) -- 72% of conservatives say they are "better off" or "about the same" than in 2004 (65% in May) More than 16,000 people took part in the Grassfire poll which has a 1% margin of error for the 1 million conservatives in the Grassfire.org network.