But Neither Candidate Has Won Them Yet

Unmarried Women Expected to Vote in Record Numbers; Prefer a Dem for President by 41 Points

Stan Greenberg and Anna Greenberg of Greenberg, Quinlan, Rosner Research released a new poll Tuesday demonstrating a significant gap between married and unmarried women in how they view the candidates, the issues, and the choices America faces. Unmarried women tend Democratic, preferring a Democrat to a Republican for President by 41 percentage points, and are already playing a large role in the Democratic primaries. They also look to economic issues above others at particularly high rates, yet unmarried women, who tend to be worse off economically, say they are not hearing their real-life needs - including pay equity, a higher minimum wage, and paid family leave - addressed by any of the candidates. According to Women's Voices. Women Vote Action Fund, which sponsored the poll, the results point to an area of opportunity for whichever candidate can bring their rhetoric from 'Wall Street' to 'Main Street' and gear their policies toward these women voters who are struggling to make ends meet.

"At 26% of the electorate, unmarried women now represent a larger portion of voters than blacks and Hispanics combined," said Page Gardner, President, Women's Voices. Women Vote Action Fund. "Yet their priorities aren't on any candidate's agenda. If either of the candidates wants to be the nominee, and then wants to win in November, he or she needs to learn to connect with these women in terms of how they live."

With a population now equal in size to that of married women (53 million), unmarried women make up 26% of the electorate, yet in the past have been 13 percentage points less likely to register and 9 percentage points less likely to vote. But according to the poll, this year unmarried women are likely to vote at nearly the same levels as married women. Likely participation rates, and how to influence them, will be discussed at the briefing.

"Unmarried women are to progressives what evangelicals were to conservatives in 2004," said Stan Greenberg. "Unmarried women will make a tremendous impact in primaries and caucuses this year, and they are the road to the White House in 2008 general elections."

In the primaries and the general, unmarried women present a huge opportunity yet, according to the poll, none of the candidates has successfully brought them into his or her tent.