Among all adults, Sen. Barack Obama barely edges out Sen. Hillary Clinton as the presidential candidate they would most like to be their neighbor in 2008 with 13 percent and 12 percent of the votes, respectively. Rounding out the top five are Republican candidates Fred Thompson (7%), Rudy Giuliani (6%) and Mike Huckabee (5%).

Neighbor Fence Lines Drawn by Party Lines

Among adults who consider themselves Democrats, Clinton and Obama remain neck-and-neck, with Clinton capturing a slight lead at 25 percent of Democratic votes, followed closely by Obama with 23 percent and Sen. John Edwards a distant third (8%). Among adults who consider themselves Republicans, it is a three-man race with Thompson (14%), Huckabee (13%) and Giuliani (12%) all closely ranked as the most desired neighbors for 2008. Obama is the favorite neighbor among Independents/Others (10%), followed by Thompson (8%) and Giuliani and Clinton (both 6%).

          Most Desired Presidential Candidate Neighbors in 2008*

  Candidate              
Total 
Republicans
Democrats
Other
Barack Obama (D)        
13
4
23
10
Hillary Clinton (D)     
12
4
25
6
Fred Thompson (R)        
7
14
2
8
Rudy Giuliani (R)        
6
12
2
6
Mike Huckabee (R)        
5
13
1
4
John Edwards (D)         
4
2
8
5
John McCain (R)          
4
9
1
4
Mitt Romney (R)          
4
9
1
4
Dennis Kucinich (D)      
2
-
3
2
Joe Biden (D)            
2
1
3
2
Ron Paul (R)             
2
3
1
3
None                    
16
15
13
21

* Results shown only for candidates earning at least 2% of all responses. 

"Other", "Not sure", and "Decline to answer" responses are not shown.

The Gender-Age Divide

Among men, Obama (11%) and Thompson (10%) are the top choices for neighbors in 2008, followed by Clinton (9%), Sen. John McCain (7%) and Huckabee (6%). For men aged 35-44, Clinton is the top choice (12%), followed closely by Giuliani (11%) and a tie between Thompson and Obama (9%). Men 55 and older do not seem to be as open to having a female presidential candidate neighbor as the younger generation -- while half as many (6%) would like to have Clinton as their neighbor, peer Fred Thompson is the front runner with 11 percent of the vote in this gender-age bracket, followed by McCain (9%) and Obama (8%).

In the female camp, Clinton is the favorite (15%), slightly ahead of Obama (14%) followed by Giuliani (7%). Among 45-54 year-old women, twice as many would like to have Clinton (22%) as a neighbor than Obama (11%), followed by Giuliani (7%).

Geographic Preferences

Seems where you hang your hat affects who you want next door. Obama has a wider lead for chief neighbor in the Midwest (16%), while he and Clinton are tied (11%) in the West, followed by Republicans Mitt Romney and Thompson (6%). Clinton is the favorite neighbor among Southerners (13%), where Thompson and Obama are fighting for second (10%). In the Northeast, local residents Giuliani and Clinton are tied for second (11%), trailing Obama (15%).

Unwelcome to the Neighborhood

Many U.S. adults would rather not have a presidential candidate in their neighborhood, as 16 percent of all adults selected "none" when asked which candidate they would most like to have as neighbor in 2008. Independents/Others, males aged 45-54 and women aged 35-44 feeling the strongest sentiment -- all at about 20 percent.