Democrats overwhelmingly back Hillary Clinton in 2016 presidential bid

NEW YORK, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- An overwhelming 80 percent of Democrats want Hillary Clinton to run for president in 2016, says the New York Times/CBS News poll released Wednesday.

Other potential candidates fell far behind Clinton in either favorability or familiarity, the Times reported.

Among Democrats, the only other candidate who came close to Clinton was Vice President Joe Biden. Among Republicans, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul were favored. All of the top candidates garnered support from about 40 percent of those polled who identified themselves as members of a party.

Other possible Democratic candidates weren't widely recognized. Some 56 percent of Democrats said they didn't know enough about Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, while 59 percent said the same about New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo. Some 82 percent said they didn't know enough about Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley.

Some 32 percent of Republicans supported Sen. Marco Rubio, who also had fewer detractors. Fifteen percent of Republicans said they did not want the junior senator from Florida to run, while 21 percent said they did not want Paul to run and 27 percent said they did not want Bush as the nominee.

Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas was backed by 24 percent of Republicans, although 59 percent said they did not know enough about him to have an opinion. Some 15 percent said they didn't want him to be in the race.

Once seen as the leading Republican possibility, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie drew only 31 percent support, while 41 percent opposed him.

The poll was conducted nationwide Feb. 19-23 with 515 Democrats, 519 Republicans and 550 independents. The margin of error was 6 percentage points.