Within the dissatisfied Republican electorate seeking someone to challenge the status quo in Washington, 47 percent name Trump as the candidate best able to so. Carson stands a distant second at 22 percent.
The contrasting results about the value of experience vs. the desire to change Washington pinpoints the reasons Bush has been frustrated in his bid to join his father, George H.W. Bush, and his brother, George W. Bush, as an occupant of the Oval Office.
The former two-term governor earns the highest marks of any candidate on the question of who has the best experience to be president, with a third of Republicans naming him. Trump is second, with about a fifth. But when Republicans were asked who they think would best be able to change Washington, only 7 percent named Bush. On that crucial question, Bush trails Trump, Carson, Rubio and Cruz.
More than a quarter of all Republicans say what they are looking for most in a candidate is honesty. Carson rates highest on this attribute, followed by Trump.
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