Sotomayor Soundings

Confirmation hearings on Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination to the Supreme Court are expected to begin on July 13. Initial reactions to her nomination have been positive. Fifty-four percent told Gallup they would like the Senate to vote in favor of her confirmation. That response is similar to early reactions to Samuel Alito (50 percent) and John Roberts (59 percent). Fifty-eight percent of those surveyed by Fox News and Opinion Dynamics in early June said they did not agree with Sotomayor's comment that “a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn’t lived that life,” while 32 percent agreed with it.  Should those remarks disqualify her?  A large majority, 67 percent said they should not.

Source: Fox News/Opinion Dynamics, June 2009.