Poll Shows Young Adults More In Tune with Race to '08

A new public opinion poll of 400 18-to 30-year-old voters
shows that young adults are paying close attention to the 2008
presidential race.

More than three-fourths of the young adults polled by Sacred Heart University in conjunction with Rock the Vote and WWE Smackdown Your Vote, said they are paying a "great deal" of attention to the campaigns.

According to the Young Voters Strategies, a nonpartisan advocacy group encouraging young voters, those poll results show engagement is up compared to similar polls conducted before the last presidential election.

The most important issue among those polled was the Iraq war. Healthcare, the economy and education ranked as the other key issues to young voters.

And what candidates do they support?
More than half of young Democrats polled -- 54 percent -- favored Hillary Clinton. Barack Obama was a distant second with 24 percent, followed by John Edwards with 8.4 percent.

Among young Republicans polled, Rudy Giuliani was out in front with more than 32 percent,followed by Fred Thompson with 20 percent,Mitt Romney with 16 percent, and John McCain with 13 percent.

Kathleen Barr, research director with Rock the Vote, said in a recent press release that the polls result show that young voters are a key element of the 2008 election. In fact, the young adult vote, says Barr, has increased in the past two major elections after almost 30 years of decline.

See full poll results.