Government Executive 2016 Presidential Poll: July 18, 2016

As reported exclusively by Government Executive.

Hillary Clinton holds a slim lead over Donald Trump among federal government employees, according to an independent Government Business Council / GovExec.com poll released on July 18, 2016. Clinton receives 42% of the vote, compared with 37% for Trump; in addition, Clinton enjoys a net favorability score 6 points higher than Trump’s.

While a plurality of survey respondents believe that Trump would be more effective in preventing terrorist attacks (44%), Clinton tends to score relatively better on issues relating to the federal workforce. Both candidates are controversial figures: 45% believe that Trump is a “bigot,” and 55% feel that controversial comments he has made are unacceptable for a presidential candidate. On the other side, 54% believe that Clinton received special treatment from the Department of Justice with regard to the investigation of her email practices, and 55% feel that these email practices constitute an unacceptable security breach for a candidate.

Methodology

Government Business Council, the research arm of Government Executive Media Group, sent the survey to a random sample of Government Executive, Nextgov, Defense One, and Route Fifty subscribers. 768 federal employees participated in the survey from July 12-18, 2016.

46% of respondents rank GS/GM-13 and above, including members of the Senior Executive Service and representatives from at least 30 federal civilian and defense agencies. The margin of error is +/-4%.

Survey Findings

Respondent Profile