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Sydney - The vast majority of Australians believe a drunken visit to a strip club by the man tipped to be their next prime minister simply proves he is "a normal bloke," an opinion poll showed on Monday.
A remarkable 85 percent of voters, both men and women, saw opposition leader Kevin Rudd's escapade in a New York nightclub in those terms, according to a poll for the Herald Sun newspaper.
The Labor Party leader had predicted he would suffer in opinion polls after admitting visiting the racy Scores nightclub in New York during a trip to the United Nations four years ago - and being too drunk to remember much about it.
But the Galaxy poll taken over the weekend showed that voters were almost universally forgiving of what Rudd has called a "foolish mistake".
Galaxy Research pollster David Briggs said the result suggested voters had been able to separate the nightclub incident from issues of substance.
"Kevin Rudd's visit to a strip club in New York four years ago is unlikely to burst his bubble," he said.
Just 10 percent of the 1 004 voters voters polled believed the incident was an indication that Rudd had poor morals.
Overall, the poll showed Rudd's centre-left Labor Party with 57 percent of the vote against 43 percent for Prime Minister John Howard's conservative Liberal-National coalition.
Those figures would translate into a landslide win for Labor and the end of 11 years in power for Howard if repeated in elections due by the end of the year.
Briggs said a recent interest-rate rise which forced up mortgage repayments weighed more heavily on voters than the strip club visit.
"The poll suggests that voters have been able to distinguish between issues of substance and non-issues, with the government taking a hit on its economic credentials," he said.
A remarkable 85 percent of voters, both men and women, saw opposition leader Kevin Rudd's escapade in a New York nightclub in those terms, according to a poll for the Herald Sun newspaper.
The Labor Party leader had predicted he would suffer in opinion polls after admitting visiting the racy Scores nightclub in New York during a trip to the United Nations four years ago - and being too drunk to remember much about it.
But the Galaxy poll taken over the weekend showed that voters were almost universally forgiving of what Rudd has called a "foolish mistake".
Galaxy Research pollster David Briggs said the result suggested voters had been able to separate the nightclub incident from issues of substance.
"Kevin Rudd's visit to a strip club in New York four years ago is unlikely to burst his bubble," he said.
Just 10 percent of the 1 004 voters voters polled believed the incident was an indication that Rudd had poor morals.
Overall, the poll showed Rudd's centre-left Labor Party with 57 percent of the vote against 43 percent for Prime Minister John Howard's conservative Liberal-National coalition.
Those figures would translate into a landslide win for Labor and the end of 11 years in power for Howard if repeated in elections due by the end of the year.
Briggs said a recent interest-rate rise which forced up mortgage repayments weighed more heavily on voters than the strip club visit.
"The poll suggests that voters have been able to distinguish between issues of substance and non-issues, with the government taking a hit on its economic credentials," he said.
Do most politicians lose popularity for getting drunk and visiting a strip club while still a politician and on business?
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