George Zimmerman — presidential candidate?
Zimmerman’s name was included on a recent 2016 Republican presidential poll even though he is a registered Democrat who voted for Barack Obama.
The poll was taken in Alaska.
Public Policy Polling (PPP), a left-leaning firm, included the neighborhood watchman’s name on an automated telephone poll for some strange reason, perhaps trying to punk the voters and/or embarrass the GOP. Given all that has happened in the high-profile murder case and its aftermath, it’s unlikely that Zimmerman could forge a career in politics at any level although he is reportedly mulling going to law school.
Alaska GOP primary voters didn’t take the bait, however, as Zimmerman only received an insignificant two percent of the vote in the poll that had a 4.4 percent margin of error. Of the nine names included on the survey of presumed presidential contenders taken in late July, US Sen. Rand Paul finished first with 18 percent, followed by former Gov. Sarah Palin with 14 percent.
Presidential polls this far out (and perhaps “far out” is an appropriate description in this instance) are usually irrelevant anyway.
Responding to the polling data of 507 Alaska voters, Zimmerman’s brother Robert Zimmerman Jr. told The Daily Caller that “I would remind the PPP that George is registered as a Democrat and voted for Obama in 2008. I’m not sure what their intent was by including his name in their poll. I’d like to believe it’s a matter of simple curiosity but in 2016 George will be … ineligible to run for president because of his age. I see this poll as a mockery of the judgment of the people of Alaska.”
Under Article II, Section 1 of the US Constitution, the president must be at least age 35 to be eligible to serve.
As the world knows, George Zimmerman, 29, was put on trial for fatally shooting Trayvon Martin, 17, on February 26, 2012, after confronting the teenager as he walked back to the house where he was staying in a gated community in Sanford, Fla.. Zimmerman, who is Hispanic, entered a plea of not guilty on self-defense grounds and went on trial in a Seminole County courtroom starting on June 24. After about 16 hours of deliberation, the six-person, all-female jury on the evening of July 13 found him not guilty of both second degree murder and manslaughter.
PPP honcho Tom Jensen told The Blaze that “[Zimmerman] had high favorability ratings with Republican voters in some national polls so we were just curious how he would do.”