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2016 presidential candidate ratings and scorecards
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This page was current as of the 2016 election.
 Date: November 8, 2016 |
Winner: Donald Trump (R) Hillary Clinton (D) • Jill Stein (G) • Gary Johnson (L) • Vice presidential candidates |
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This article is about the ratings and scores that various political interest groups and organizations gave to 2016 presidential candidates. For candidates with previous experience holding elected office, ratings from 2014 and lifetime scores were also included. If you are aware of applicable ratings not listed here, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.
What's in this article?
Ballotpedia has broken down everything you need to know about 2016 presidential candidate ratings into the following sections:
- Ratings by general election and Democratic and Republican primary candidates
- Ratings by organization
- Organizations and methodology
Preceding these three sections are a brief definition and history of political rating systems, a guide on how to read them and a table highlighting abbreviations, the scoring scale used by each organization and the political description most commonly associated with each organization.
What are candidate ratings and how long have they been around?
Candidate ratings have a long history in American politics, and they have become an increasingly familiar part of the political landscape. Broadly defined, candidate ratings (sometimes called rankings or scorecards) are scores that various political, academic and media organizations assign to politicians based on voting records, issue stances, public statements and, more recently, campaign contributions.[1] The political leanings of these organizations cover the full political spectrum.
The reasons and methods for rating politicians have changed over time and vary from group to group. When politically active organizations such as the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and the National Farmers Union (NFU) pioneered the practice of rating elected officials in the early 20th century—in 1906 and 1919 respectively—they were primarily focused on advancing their own political interests. The AFL, for example, rated officials based on their stances or records on labor-related issues, while the NFU concentrated on farming issues. Both organizations advertised their ratings to their members and the general public as a way of attempting to shape voter preferences and to advocate for the candidates most closely aligned with their political interests. Numerous politically active organizations followed the NFU and AFL’s lead, and it wasn't long until groups dedicated to issues such as the environment, free markets, religion, family values, reproductive rights and civil liberties—amongst many, many others—were also rating politicians. One study estimated that by the time Ronald Reagan (R) ran for a second term in 1984, over 90 organizations were actively rating members of Congress and other politicians in the United States.[2]
In the early 21st century, that number ballooned into the hundreds, and, today, groups dedicated to a whole range of different issues systematically rate elected officials and political candidates alike. But the rise of legislative and candidate ratings has also seen the emergence of objective rating organizations. These latter organizations use similar methodologies to those used by political interest groups—such as relying upon issue stances, public statements and voting records—but rate candidates objectively on a broad political spectrum and without regard to specific political issues or interests.[3]
How do I read candidate ratings?
| Context is critical for reading candidate ratings. The reason for this is that many of the organizations that conduct ratings do so not only from the perspective of their particular interests but from their political points-of-view as well. A conservative organization, for instance, will more often than not assign lower ratings to Democrats and higher ratings to Republicans. The same can be said about liberal organizations. By that same token, groups further to the right will likely rate higher Republicans they view as more conservative, while groups further to the left will rate higher Democrats they see as more liberal. The inverse of this is, of course, also true. A reader should therefore closely consider the political leanings of an organization when weighing the value of the score that it has assigned to a candidate. To help with this, Ballotpedia has included in the abbreviations and scoring guide below the political description most commonly associated with each organization. You can also access this information by hovering your cursor over the organization abbreviations in the individual candidate profiles, which will cause a pop-up box to appear that explains the organization's history, politics and scoring methodology. Further details can be found below in the "Organizations and methodology" section.
Equally as important to keeping in mind the points-of-view of ratings organizations is keeping in mind your own political leanings. A left-leaning reader may want to place more stock in groups such as Americans for Democratic Action or the League of Conservation Voters, whereas a right-leaning reader may want to focus on groups like Leadership Project for America PAC or Club for Growth. With that being said, readers should still find ratings from groups with opposing political leanings useful. A poor rating for a candidate from a group with a political preference opposite to your own could easily be interpreted as a positive. Some politicians, in fact, view a low rating as a badge of honor. When Heritage Action for America gave former Democratic congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. of Illinois a "0," he stated, "When it comes to the Heritage Foundation, zero isn’t good enough." What Jackson was implying with this statement was that, because Heritage represents a political worldview so far from his own, the lower the rating the better.[4] Some readers may find this same approach to be a useful gauge for assessing groups with opposing political leanings. |
Abbreviations, scoring and political leanings
| Abbreviation | Full name | Scoring | Political leaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| ACLU | American Civil Liberties Union | 0-100% | Liberal |
| ACU | American Conservative Union | 0-100% | Conservative |
| ADA | Americans for Democratic Action | 0-100% | Liberal |
| CATO | Cato Institute | 0-100% | Libertarian |
| CFG | Club for Growth | 0-100% | Conservative |
| Crowdpac | Crowdpac.com | 10L to 10C* | Neutral |
| Heritage | Heritage Action for America | 0-100% | Conservative |
| LCV | League of Conservation Voters | 0-100% | Liberal |
| LPA PAC | Leadership Project for America PAC | 0-100% | Conservative |
| NARAL | National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League | 0-100% | Liberal |
| NTU | National Taxpayers Union | 0-100% | Conservative |
| USCC | United States Chamber of Commerce | 0-100% | Conservative |
*L denotes "liberal." C denotes "conservative."
General election candidates
Note: Hover your cursor over the organization abbreviations in order to learn more about each organization's history, political leaning and scoring methodology.
Hillary Clinton (D)
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Clinton served as the secretary of state of the United States of America from January 21, 2009, to February 1, 2013, and as a senator from New York from 2001 to 2009. She lost the Democratic presidential primary nomination to Barack Obama in 2008.[5] Clinton also served as first lady during her husband, President Bill Clinton's, two terms. She is the first former first lady to serve both in the U.S. Senate and in a president's cabinet.[6] Group Ratings:
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Donald Trump (R)
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Donald Trump is a businessman, financial investor and television personality. He announced his bid for the presidency on June 16, 2015, at Trump Tower in New York City. Group Ratings:
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Gary Johnson (L)
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Gary Johnson is the former two-term Republican governor of New Mexico. He ran as the Libertarian Party nominee for president in 2012 and received 1,275,971 votes in the general election. Group Ratings:
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Jill Stein (G)
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Stein was the Green Party’s 2012 candidate for president. She entered politics in 2002 when the Massachusetts Green-Rainbow Party asked her to run for governor of Massachusetts. Stein later represented the Green-Rainbow party in a race for state representative in 2004, in a race for secretary of state in 2006 and in Massachusetts' 2010 gubernatorial election. Group Ratings:
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Democratic primary candidates
Bernie Sanders
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Sanders is an independent member of the U.S. Senate from the state of Vermont. He was first elected to the Senate in 2006. Sanders calls himself a democratic socialist and is a member of the Senate Democratic Caucus.[7][8][9][10] Group Ratings:
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Lincoln Chafee
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Chafee served as the governor of Rhode Island from 2011 to 2015 and as a U.S. senator from 2000 to 2007. In the Senate, he was a Republican, and he ran for governor as an independent. He joined the Democratic Party on May 30, 2013.
Group Ratings:
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Martin O'Malley
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O'Malley served as the governor of Maryland from January 17, 2007, to January 21, 2015. He served as the chair of the Governor's Executive Council from 2007 to 2015 and the co-chair of the Council of Governors from 2013 to 2015.[11] Prior to his gubernatorial career, O'Malley served as the mayor of Baltimore from 1999 to 2007. Group Ratings:
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Jim Webb
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Webb was a U.S. senator from Virginia from January 3, 2007, to January 3, 2013. Webb served as the secretary of the Navy from 1987 to 1988 and in the United States Marines from 1968 to 1972.[12] Group Ratings:
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Click here to return to the abbreviations and scoring guide.
Republican primary candidates
Note: Hover your cursor over the organization abbreviations in order to learn more about each organizations' history, political leaning and scoring methodology.
Ted Cruz
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Cruz is a Republican member of the United States Senate from Texas. He won election to the Senate on November 6, 2012.[13] He previously served as solicitor general of Texas from 2003 to 2008, and he argued 40 oral arguments, including nine before the U.S. Supreme Court.[14] Group Ratings:
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John Kasich
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John Kasich is the governor of Ohio. He previously served in the Ohio State Senate from 1979 to 1983 and in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1983 to 2001, representing Ohio's 12th Congressional District. Kasich also ran unsuccessfully for president of the United States in 2000. Group Ratings:
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Jeb Bush
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Bush served as the governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. He is the son of President George H.W. Bush and the younger brother of President George W. Bush. Bush was the first brother of a president to run for the office since Robert Kennedy in 1968. Group Ratings:
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Ben Carson
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Carson is a retired neurosurgeon. He worked as the director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University and as a professor of neurosurgery, oncology, plastic surgery and pediatric medicine. He gained popularity with conservatives after his speech at the 2013 National Prayer Breakfast, where he expressed his dissatisfaction with President Barack Obama's policies and the direction of the country.[15] Group Ratings:
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Chris Christie
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Christie is the current governor of New Jersey. He was first elected in 2009. Prior to his gubernatorial bid, Christie served as the U.S. attorney for New Jersey from 2002 to 2008. Group Ratings:
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Carly Fiorina
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Fiorina is the chairwoman of the American Conservative Union Foundation, the Unlocking Potential Project, Good360, and Opportunity International. She was chairwoman and CEO of Hewlett-Packard from 1999 to 2005. Fiorina ran unsuccessfully for United States Senate in California in 2010. She was defeated by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D).[16] Group Ratings:
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Lindsey Graham
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Graham is a Republican member of the U.S. Senate from the state of South Carolina. He was first elected to the Senate in 2002 and most recently won re-election in 2014. Graham also represented South Carolina's 3rd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives from January 3, 1995, to January 3, 2003.[17] Group Ratings:
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Mike Huckabee
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Huckabee was the 44th governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007 and a 2008 presidential candidate. He also hosted a show on Fox News called Huckabee, but he left the show before officially announcing his candidacy. Group Ratings:
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Bobby Jindal
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Jindal is the former governor of Louisiana. He was first elected in 2007 and was re-elected to the position on October 22, 2011. He previously served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Louisiana's 1st Congressional District from 2004 to 2008. Jindal was considered a possible candidate for Mitt Romney's vice presidential running mate in 2012, but Romney chose Paul Ryan instead.[18][19] Group Ratings:
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George Pataki
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Pataki served as the governor of New York for three terms between 1995 and 2007.[20] Pataki has since worked for the law firm Chadbourne & Parke LLP and founded a consulting firm with his former Chief of Staff John Cahill.[21][22] Group Ratings:
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Rand Paul
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Paul is a Republican member of the U.S. Senate from the state of Kentucky. Prior to being elected to Congress in 2010, Paul worked as an ophthalmologist.[23] Group Ratings:
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Rick Perry
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Rick Perry served as the governor of Texas from December 2000 to January 2015. Perry also ran for the Republican nomination for president of the United States in the 2012 presidential election. Group Ratings:
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Marco Rubio
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Rubio is a Republican member of the U.S. Senate from the state of Florida. He was first elected in 2010. Rubio was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 2000 to 2008. Group Ratings:
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Rick Santorum
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Santorum served as a U.S. senator from Pennsylvania from January 3, 1995, to January 3, 2007. He also served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District from January 3, 1991, to January 3, 1995.[24] He ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012, but he ended his campaign on April 10, 2012.[25][26] Group Ratings:
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Scott Walker
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Scott Walker was elected as the 45th governor of Wisconsin in 2010. Two years later, he became the first governor in American history to survive a recall election, and he won re-election in 2014. Walker was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1993 to 2002 and was the Milwaukee County executive from 2002 to 2010. Group Ratings:
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Click here to return to the abbreviations and scoring guide.
Ratings by organization
Featured in the tabs below are candidate ratings from 2015 and 2016. As new ratings are released, they will be added here and to the individual candidate profiles.
Crowdpac
| Crowdpac.com is a for-profit, nonpartisan voter education website. Its scoring system is based on public statements, voting records and campaign contributions including contributions to the candidate as well as contributions from the candidate. Scores fall along a liberal/conservative spectrum, with 10L being the most liberal and 10C being the most conservative. A score of zero would indicate a political moderate. Scores are listed from most liberal to most conservative. |
General election candidates
Primary election candidates
Note: These scores were current as of July 2016.
|
LPA PAC
| The Leadership Project for America PAC is a free market political action committee. LPA PAC rates candidates in light of three broad categories: character, leadership skills and commitment to limited constitutional government. The organization also factors in vulnerability/electability issues. The third category—commitment to limited constitutional government—includes issues such as "free market economic principles, strong national security principles and American exceptionalism." Scores are listed from highest to lowest. |
General election candidates
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Primary election candidates
Note: These scores were current as of July 2016.
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Organizations and methodology
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union, or ACLU, is a group of nonprofit organizations that work together to preserve and promote civil liberties and constitutional rights through litigation, lobbying, communication and public education. With its national headquarters in New York City, the ACLU has autonomous affiliates in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.[27] Their rating system is centered on a collection of bills related to civil liberties, and the ACLU rates legislators depending on how they vote on these bills. The ratings featured above come from the Federal ACLU Scorecard - 113th Congress, Combined Sessions and Federal ACLU Scorecard - 114th Congress, Combined Sessions.
American Conservative Union
The American Conservative Union (ACU) is a conservative 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1964, the organization is responsible for the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). It began rating members of Congress in 1971 and focuses on votes related to taxes, spending, cultural issues, defense and foreign policy. As stated on its official website, the ACU aims to serve "as a dividing line to help separate those members of the U.S. House and Senate who protect liberty as conservatives and those who are truly liberal."[28]
Americans for Democratic Action
The ADA is a liberal 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., and refers to itself as the "nation's most experienced organization committed to liberal politics, liberal policies, and a liberal future."[29][30] Founded by Eleanor Roosevelt, John Kenneth Galbraith, Walter Reuther, Arthur Schlesinger and Reinhold Niebuhr, the ADA has been issuing its Annual Voting Records since 1947. It focuses on 20 votes related to social and economic issues. Legislators receive five points for each vote that aligns with the ADA.[31]
Cato Institute
The Cato Institute, founded in 1977 by Ed Crane and Charles G. Koch, is a libertarian 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. It describes itself as "a public policy research organization – a think tank – dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets and peace."[32][33] The scores used above are from the institute's 2014 Fiscal Policy Report Card on America's Governors. The report card grades governors from a "limited-government perspective." A high grade denotes a governor who cut taxes and decreased spending in the previous fiscal year. A low grade, by contrast, denotes a governor who raised taxes and increased spending. To provide some perspective on the scores shown above, it should be noted that the highest score that the institute awarded in 2014 was 78. The lowest was 19.
Club for Growth
The Club for Growth (CFG) is a fiscally conservative 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization with an agenda focused on taxation and other fiscal issues. Its policy goals include cuts to income tax rates, a repeal of the estate tax, limited government and a Balanced Budget Amendment, entitlement reform, free trade, tort reform, school choice and deregulation.[34] The Club for Growth PAC endorses and raises money for fiscally conservative candidates. CFG releases annual ratings of members of Congress centered on votes related to free markets and limited government.[35]
Crowdpac
Crowdpac.com was a for-profit, nonpartisan voter education website that sought "to give politics back to people - to make it easier for citizens to learn about politicians, and to find and support political candidates that match their priorities and beliefs." Based in Palo Alto, California, and led by Steve Hilton, a former senior advisor to UK Prime Minister David Cameron and a visiting professor at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Crowdpac allowed users to view political candidates' policy positions and to make donations to candidates whose values align with their own. Crowdpac's scoring system was based on public statements, voting records and campaign contributions including contributions to the candidate as well as contributions from the candidate. Scores fell along a liberal/conservative spectrum, with 10L being the most liberal and 10C being the most conservative. A score of zero would indicate a political moderate.[36]
Heritage Action for America
Heritage Action for America (HAA) is the 501(c)(4) sister organization of the conservative Heritage Foundation. Since its establishment in 2010, Heritage Action for America has advocated for a conservative policy agenda and rates members of Congress from a conservative perspective on a wide range of policy issues. While Congress is in session, HAA updates scores weekly. The scores featured here are lifetime scores.[37]
Leadership Project for America PAC
The Leadership Project for America PAC is a conservative 501(c)(4) political action committee that supports candidates "who demonstrate a commitment to a governing agenda that promotes a free, virtuous, and prosperous America." LPA PAC rates candidates in light of three broad categories: character, leadership skills and commitment to limited constitutional government. The organization also factors in vulnerability/electability issues. The third category—commitment to limited constitutional government—includes issues such as free market economic principles, strong national security principles and American exceptionalism.[38]
League of Conservation Voters
The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) is a liberal 501(c)(4) nonprofit organization that, according to its mission statement, "advocates for sound environmental laws and policies, holds elected officials accountable for their votes and actions, and elects pro-environment candidates who will champion our priority issues." Its ratings are based on how members of Congress vote on legislation related to climate change, energy usage, wildlife conservation, public health and public lands. It provides new scorecards every year.[39]
National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League
NARAL, founded in 1969 as the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws, is a 501(c)(4) pro-choice nonprofit organization that "uses the political process to guarantee every woman the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive choices, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion."[40] It rates members of Congress on how they voted on abortion-related legislation. The 2014 Scorecard hinged on three key Senate votes.
National Taxpayers Union
The National Taxpayers Union is a 501(c)(4) taxpayer advocacy nonprofit organization founded in 1969. The NTU describes its mission as "to protect every single American's right to keep more of what they've earned" and "to ensure that all Americans are able to pursue their dreams without the heavy hand of government holding them back."[41] It annually rates members of Congress based on votes related to taxes, spending and debt.[42]
United States Chamber of Commerce
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, abbreviated above as USCC, is a 501(c)(6) pro-business advocacy organization.[43][44] The Chamber was founded in 1912 and annually ranks members of Congress on votes related to the economy and finances. Its 2014 Senate Scorecard revolved around eight pieces of legislation. Senators received 12.5 points for each vote that aligned with Chamber interests.
See also
- Presidential candidates, 2016
- Important presidential campaign dates, 2016
- Presidential election, 2016/Polls
- Presidential election, 2016/Straw polls
- Presidential election, 2016
- Economic, social issues top concerns in state legislative scorecards
External links
- Americans for Democratic Action: 2014 Congressional Voting Record
- American Civil Liberties Union: Federal ACLU Scorecard, 113th Congress, Combined Sessions
- American Conservative Union Federal Legislative Rankings
- Cato Institute Fiscal Policy Report Card on America's Governors 2014
- Club for Growth Congressional Scorecards
- Crowdpac 2016 Presidential Election
- Heritage Action for American Scorecard
- Leadership Project for American PAC Candidate's Grades and Comparisons
- League of Conservation Voters 2014 National Environmental Scorecard
- National Taxpayers Union: Rates Congress
- NARAL Pro-Choice America: Congress
- U.S. Chamber of Commerce: How They Voted 2014 - Senate
Footnotes
- ↑ CNN.com, "Rating 2016 candidates by donors busts conventional wisdom," January 14, 2015
- ↑ Daniels, S.R., "Rehabilitating the Raters: An Assessment of Interest Group Ratings of Congress," in Congress and the Presidency, Vol. 16, No. 1, Spring 1989
- ↑ Smith, S. et al. The American Congress New York: Cambridge University Press, 2011: 268-271
- ↑ CQ Roll Call, "Keeping Score: The Power of Lawmaker 'Report Cards'," January 19, 2013
- ↑ Biography.com, "Hillary Clinton," accessed September 5, 2013
- ↑ NPR, "Obama Brings Hillary to Cabinet, GOP to Ariz. State House," December 1, 2008
- ↑ Sanders.Senate.gov, "About," accessed April 9, 2015
- ↑ The New York Times, "A Vermont Senator Asks, Why Not a Socialist President?" accessed April 9, 2015
- ↑ Official Senate website, "Newsroom," accessed October 12, 2011
- ↑ Maryland.gov, "Governor," accessed February 4, 2015
- ↑ Congress.gov, "WEBB, James H. (Jim), (1946 - )," accessed February 4, 2015
- ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, Texas," November 6, 2012
- ↑ Ted Cruz, "Bio," accessed November 1, 2012
- ↑ Washington Times, "A ‘very upset’ W.H. told Dr. Carson to apologize for prayer breakfast speech," accessed February 4, 2015
- ↑ Up Project, "Carly Fiorina," accessed March 31, 2015
- ↑ Congressional Bioguide, "Lindsey Graham," accessed September 18, 2013
- ↑ Boston.com, "Mitt Romney chooses Paul Ryan as running mate," August 11, 2012
- ↑ USA Today, "Romney's VP pick likely to go to safest candidate," July 14, 2012
- ↑ Governor George Pataki, "Biography," accessed May 15, 2015
- ↑ Slate, "Ready for Pataki," January 27, 2015
- ↑ The Pataki-Cahill Group, "Home," accessed May 15, 2015
- ↑ Rand Paul, "About," accessed May 27, 2015
- ↑ Bioguide.Congress.gov, "SANTORUM, Richard John (Rick), (1958 - )," accessed March 18, 2015
- ↑ USA Today, "Santorum: Family holds key on another White House bid," November 18, 2013
- ↑ The Caucus, "Santorum to suspend presidential campaign," April 10, 2012
- ↑ American Civil Liberties Union, "ACLU History," accessed June 19, 2015
- ↑ American Conservative Union, "ACU Ratings," accessed July 8, 2015
- ↑ Political Advocacy, "Americans for Democratic Action," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ ADA Action, "Who we are," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ ADA Action, "Voting Records," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ Cato.org, "About," accessed May 1, 2015
- ↑ Cato.org, "25 Years at The Cato Institute," accessed May 1, 2015
- ↑ Club for Growth, "About," accessed July 18, 2013
- ↑ Club for Growth, "Congressional Scorecards," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ Crowdpac.com, "About," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ Heritage Action, "About," accessed December 5, 2013
- ↑ Leadership Project for America, "LPA Research Model," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ League of Conservation Voters, "Mission," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ Facebook.com, "About NARAL," accessed October 24, 2013
- ↑ National Taxpayers Union, "About," accessed July 13, 2015
- ↑ National Taxpayers Union, "Rates Congress," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ U.S. Chamber, "About the U.S. Chamber," accessed July 10, 2015
- ↑ U.S. Chamber, "F.A.Q.," accessed July 10, 2015
