Citi Research Explains The Cause For So Much Presidential Election Uncertainty

Citi Research analyst Tina Fordhan recently took a look at the latest poll numbers surrounding the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The Real Clear Politics poll average indicates Democrat Hillary Clinton leading Republican Donald Trump 44.9 percent to 40.3 percent. According to Fordhan, voters’ negative opinions of both candidates could make this election “the most uncertain in decades.”

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Incredibly, 55.1 percent of potential voters report a negative perception of Clinton, while 59.8 percent of voters report a negative perception of Trump. However, unless a viable third-party candidate comes out of nowhere in the next four months, many voters may have to decide which candidate is the lesser of two evils come November.

As with any election, Citi noted that the outcome will likely be decided by the vote in following swing states:

• Iowa
• New Hampshire
• Florida
• Colorado
• Nevada
• Ohio
• Virginia

Clinton and Trump aren’t the only candidates struggling with public perception. Citi also reports that voter trust in all politicians is near all-time lows, especially for Republicans.

Citi Research asked voters to rate how often they believe each candidate tells the truth on the following scale: Pants on Fire/False/Mostly False/Half True/True/Mostly True. Clinton scored much better than Trump, with 51 percent of voters believing Clinton is True or Mostly True compared to only 7 percent who believe the same for Trump.

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