Sen. Bernie Sanders has cut Hillary Clintons once-commanding national lead in the Democratic primary race by more than half over the last month, a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll finds.
Mrs. Clinton, the former secretary of state, drew support from 53% of people who expect to vote in Democratic primaries, while 42% picked Mr. Sanders. That 11-point spread is much closer than the 25-point advantage Mrs. Clinton enjoyed a month ago, when the poll found her ahead by 59% to 34%.
The new poll found that Mrs. Clinton holds a solid but diminished lead among her core group of supporters: women. She continues to dominate among minorities, a crucial voting bloc in coming contests in Nevada and the South.
The race is tightening, said Bill McInturff, a Republican pollster who helped conduct the survey with Democrat Fred Yang. At the same time, he said, Mrs. Clinton retains structural advantages
that put her in a competitive position to be the Democratic nominee.
The poll points to a long-term challenge for Mrs. Clinton in the continued rise of negative feelings about her among the broader electorate. Half of the people surveyed said they felt negatively about her, a record high for her. More than half said they would feel uncertain or pessimistic if she won the White House.
Peter D. Hart, a Democratic pollster who helped conduct the survey, said that Mrs. Clintons biggest obstacle in 2016 isnt Mr. Sanders, but her own difficulty in winning the trust and affection of voters.
She is running against herself, Mr. Hart said. When it comes to competence, temperament
she laps the field. Voters just need to like her.
The poll, conducted Feb. 14-16, signaled continuing progress for Mr. Sanders in the aftermath of voting in Iowa, where Mrs. Clinton barely eked out a victory, and in New Hampshire, where the Vermont senator won decisively.
Mr. Sanderss gains over the past month were due in large part to rising support among younger women. Mrs. Clinton remains ahead among women overall, but Mr. Sanders slashed her lead by 19 percentage points, to 58%-39%. Mr. Sanders leads among women under age 50, while Mrs. Clinton holds a far larger lead among those 50 and older.
A bigger challenge for Mr. Sanders has been his underperformance among minority voters. He made some gains among nonwhite voters in the new poll, but Mrs. Clinton still leads among those voters by 29 percentage points, 62% to 33%. In January, she had led by 42 points.
More Democratic voters express reservations about Mr. Sanderss key weaknesses than about Mrs. Clintons. About one quarter said they were concerned about his lack of foreign policy experience, and 23% said his policy proposals were out of the mainstream.
Mrs. Clintons ties to Wall Streeta central line of attack by Mr. Sanderswere a concern to 22% of Democratic voters. Questions about Mrs. Clintons honesty and judgment related to her use of a private email server while in the government were of little consequence within the party: Only 7% of Democratic primary voters said they were concerned about it.
Mr. Sanders is winning over change-oriented young women such as LaurrenNirider, 25, a poll participant in Richland, Wash.
Im 100% behind having a woman president. But Im not going to support someone just because shes a woman, said Ms. Nirider, who backs Mr. Sanders. Compared to Hillary Clinton, hes going to be able to move the country in a more forward direction. Hes rattling the cages a little more.
Nancy D. Pemberton, 65, a college teacher in Tryon, N.C., said she thought Mr. Sanders was too inexperienced and his policies unrealistic. She saw Mrs. Clinton as better equipped for the office.
She can get the job done, and that is the most compelling thing that I am looking at, said Ms. Pemberton. It couldnt hurt to have a woman in there.
The poll asked voters of both parties to consider hypothetical candidate matchups and found that Mr. Sanders, at least for now, seemed better equipped than Mrs. Clinton to beat a GOP opponent in the fall.
Mr. Sanders outpolled businessman Donald Trump by 16 points53% to 37%and Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas by 50% to 40%.
Mrs. Clinton also beat Mr. Trump in a one-on-one matchup, 50% to 40%, but only tied Mr. Cruz, 46% to 46%.
Mr. Hart warned, however, that such polls this early in a campaign are poor predictors of general election matchups when a candidate is as little known as Mr. Sanders.
Gauging the publics attention to the campaign, the poll found that Democratic voters show less interest in the election than do Republicans. Asked to rate their interest on a scale of one to 10, 77% of Democratic primary voters rated themselves a nine or 10, compared with 87% of Republican primary voters.
If the election came to a Clinton-Trump face-off, many voters would see the choice as between two unfavorable options. Mrs. Clinton topped Mr. Trump, 50% to 40%, among registered voters. But only 34% said their vote would be a sign of support for their chosen candidate, while 47% said it would be a signal that they didnt want the other candidate to be elected.
Asked whether they viewed the candidates in a favorable or unfavorable light, voters had sharply negative views of three candidates: Mrs. Clinton and Messrs. Cruz and Trump. Some 59% of voters viewed Mr. Trump negatively.
Views of only two candidatesMr. Sanders and Ohio Gov. John Kasichwere more positive than negative.
None of the candidates in either party inspired great confidence in voters: Asked how they would feel if each were elected president, no candidate sparked more than 21% of voters to say they would feel optimistic and confident.
Mr. Yang, the Democratic pollster, said the 2016 campaign seems to be shaping up as a race to the bottom, with the more likely dynamic being why the other person shouldnt be president.
