If Florida decides to have a second Presidential Primary this year, Hillary Clinton will begin the race with a sixteen-percentage point lead over Barack Obama. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey shows that Clinton attracts 55% of the Sunshine State Primary Vote while Obama earns 39%.

Florida voted on January 29 in violation of Democratic Party rules. Clinton won that Primary by seventeen percentage points, although the candidates did not actively campaign in the state. There has been talk of a do-over” primary so that Florida’s delegates can be counted at the Democratic convention in August. Data released earlier shows that Democrats in the state favor a do-over while Republicans don’t like the idea of having their state invaded by politicians for a second time this season.

In Florida, 76% of Likely Democratic Primary Voters have a favorable opinion of Clinton while 72% say the same of Obama.

Demographically, Clinton leads by thirty-seven points among women but trails by twelve among men. She does very well among older voters while Obama is popular with younger voters. Nationally, Clinton has the lead over Obama in the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll.

Forty-seven percent (47%) say they’d want Clinton in the White House to answer a 3:00 a.m. phone call with a foreign policy crisis. Thirty-five percent (35%) would rather have Obama answer that call while 14% of Democratic Primary Voters say John McCain would be the best in that situation.

Sixty percent (60%) say that the economy is the top issue in Florida. That’s little changed from the first Primary in the state. Consumer confidence has fallen to seven-year lows and unaffiliated voters nationwide are especially pessimistic . In Florida, 28% of Democratic Primary Voters say that the North American Free Trade Agreement—NAFTA—is good for the United States. Forty-one percent (41%) disagree.

If Hillary Clinton is eventually nominated by the Democrats, just 54% of Obama’s voters say they’d be Very Likely to vote for the former First Lady in a general election contest against John McCain. Another 9% would be Somewhat Likely to vote for Clinton. Twenty-seven percent (27%) of Obama voters say they are Not at All Likely to vote for Clinton if she is the nominee.

If Barack Obama is nominated, just 42% of Clinton’s votes say they’d be Very Likely to vote for Obama against McCain. Another 14% would be Somewhat Likely to vote for Obama while 20% say they are Not at All Likely to vote for Obama if he is the nominee.

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