Political Winners and Losers of 2009

The Salahis are not exactly in politics, so perhaps the real honoree for the political loser prize is their runner-up, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford whose career imploded after he admitted to a extramarital affair with an Argentinian woman.

Seventy-three percent of those polled judged the First Lady to be a winner while 21 percent called her a loser. Clinton, who has consistently received high marks in polls for her performance as secretary of state, was deemed a winner by 70 percent and a loser by 25 percent. Sotomayor, the first Hispanic woman to sit on the Supreme Court, placed third with 57 percent saying she was a winner and 24 percent calling her a loser.

While President Obama is considered a winner by 58 percent, edging Sotomayor by a point, a much larger number (38 percent) consider him a loser.

South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson, famous for shouting out "You lie!" at president Obama during an address to Congress,comes in third on the losers list after the Salahis and Sanford, with 61 percent putting him in that category while 29 percent considered him a winner. Fifty-two percent consider congressional Republicans to be political losers this year while 38 percent call them winner. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is judged a loser by 50 percent and a winner by 39 percent.

Some of the other notables of the year fell into a kind of gray area, where those surveyed were divided on their view.

Forty-nine percent called Sarah Palin a loser while 46 percent said she was a winner in 2009. Forty-two percent called Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid a loser, while 31 percent said he was a winner. Radio talk show host Glenn Beck was a loser in the eyes of 37 percent and a winner to 35 percent. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was a winner to 37 percent and a loser to 35 percent.

In the case of Bernanke and Beck, 28 percent had no opinion and that was true for 27 percent in Reid's case.