24 May 2016•Update: 02 June 2016
By Michael Hernandez
WASHINGTON
With less than six months until nationwide presidential polls, neither Donald Trump nor Hillary Clinton are viewed favorable by Americans, according to a poll released Tuesday.
Almost 60 percent of Americans say they “hate” or “dislike” Clinton, and just a slightly higher number voice similar opinions of Trump, an NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll found.
The poll was based on online responses taken May 16 through May 22.
While Clinton has yet to clinch the Democratic Party’s nomination, the chances that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders pulls off a come from behind victory appear slim to none -- setting the stage for a likely showdown between the former secretary of state and Trump.
Americans are nearly evenly divided between the candidates, with Clinton holding the three-point advantage in a 48 percent to 45 percent split, according to the poll.
Clinton continues to poll well among women where she holds an 18-point lead over Trump. But Trump leads among men, besting Clinton by 10 points.
Among black and Hispanic voters, Clinton continues to poll well, holding an 82-point lead in the former demographic, and a 35-point lead in the latter.
Trump, however, leads among whites by 14 points.
Still, the support that each candidate enjoys may have much to do with their opponent.
Approximately one-third of those who support either Trump or Clinton said that they do so in opposition to the other candidate.
Trump’s supporters said they back him by roughly the same number, 31 percent, based on his policy stances, while only 15 percent of Clinton’s supporters said they support her based on that criteria.
Thirty percent of her supporters said they support Clinton based on her experience, a far cry from the 2 percent who said the same of Trump.
