A majority of Democrats who watched last week’s debate said that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton won in her first head-on encounter with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, according to a CNN poll.
Fully 62% of Democrats polled said that Clinton was the winner, while 35% said that Sanders won. Just 1% each said former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb won.
Clinton had prepared for weeks for the first debate of the Democratic presidential primary contest, and firmly attacked Sanders’ record on gun control early, saying he had not gone far enough on the issue. She also criticized his admiration for Denmark, saying, “We are not Denmark. I love Denmark. We are the United States of America and it’s our job to rein in the excesses of capitalism so it doesn’t run amok.”
Many Sanders supporters believe he won the debate, and Sanders’ campaign has argued he did important work in putting economic issues front and center on the stage in Las Vegas last week.
Despite the consensus that Clinton won the debate, national polls of the Democratic primary do not appear to have moved significantly, with Clinton’s margin over Sanders shrinking by one percentage point. Clinton leads Sanders in national polls, 45% to 29%.
The results for who won the debate have a margin of error of 7.5%, and the overall primary poll has a margin of error of 5%.
Decoding Hillary Clinton's Campaign Photo Ops
Des Moines, IA - April 15: Hillary Clinton began her 2016 campaign by driving from her house in Chappaqua, N.Y., to Iowa in a van instead of flying, as she did in 2008.Justin Sullivan—Getty ImagesMarshalltown, IA - April 15: Clinton had coffee and spoke with customers during her first Iowa visit. Many of her advisors think she performs best in small groups with voters, so her campaign began with a carefully planned “listening tour."Michael B. Thomas—AFP/Getty ImagesMonticello, IA - April 14: At a community college in Iowa, Clinton said exactly what the left wanted her to say. "There's something wrong when hedge fund managers pay lower tax rates than nurses or the truckers that I saw on I-80 as I was driving here," Clinton said.Justin Sullivan—Getty ImagesKeene, N.H. - April 20: Clinton’s first good baby photo-op came early in New Hampshire in the town of Keene. Her campaign has made multiple references to her new status as a grandmother.Lucas Jackson—ReutersKeene, N.H. - April 20: Clinton visited a family-owned children’s furniture factory to talk small business and manufacturing. Planks of wood, stacked boxes and heavy machinery formed an ideal backdrop.Don Emmert—AFP/Getty ImagesKeene, N.H. - April 20: Clinton chose a casual setting to brush off questions over the Clinton Foundation’s acceptance of donations during her time as secretary of state. She called allegations that she intervened on behalf of donors “distractions.” Don Emmert—AFP/Getty ImagesConcord, N.H. - April 21: Clinton got a chance to talk student debt with young women at a community college in Concord, New Hampshire. “You cannot expect people to have that much debt and then be expected to pay it off,” she said.Andrew Burton—Getty ImagesConcord, N.H. - April 21: Clinton paid her dues with a required visit for Democratic hopefuls in New Hampshire: a gathering at the home of 94-year-old former state Sen. Mary Louise Hancock, the so-called grand dame of New Hampshire politics.Jim Cole—APLas Vegas, NV - May 5: Clinton discussed immigration with a roundtable in Las Vegas, Nevada, a primary state with a heavy population of Hispanic immigrants, calling for a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. Mike Blake—Reuters
