There was less agreement among Democrats over an exit strategy. Slightly more than half of DNC members favored legislation requiring Bush to begin withdrawing U.S. troops, whereas 17 percent favored the more dramatic step of cutting off funding. About 2 in 10 Democrats said Bush should not be required to withdraw troops.

Despite their differences and the considerable attention the war has gotten in the campaign, particularly among Democrats, most insiders said Iraq was unlikely to be the decisive issue in their respective party primaries. Sixty-five percent of Republicans and 50 percent of Democrats said the war would be an important issue in the 2008 contest, but not the most important. Forty-eight percent of Democrats said Iraq would be the most important issue.

Asked the most important issue for Democrats to address, nearly 6 in 10 party insiders said health care, followed by Iraq. Among Republicans, just about 1 in 3 said the war and reconstruction of Iraq, followed by homeland security and global terrorism. Slightly more than one-fifth of Republicans cited the immigration issue as a priority, compared with 2 percent of Democrats.

Among Democrats, all of the candidates — declared and prospective — enjoyed overwhelmingly favorable ratings, save three: Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich of Ohio, who is making his second White House bid; the Rev. Al Sharpton, who ran for president in 2004, and former Sen. Mike Gravel of Alaska. All were viewed more negatively than positively.

On the Republican side, views of the candidates were mixed. Giuliani and Romney were each viewed favorably by 83 percent of party leaders, and Gingrich by 78 percent. McCain was viewed favorably by 56 percent of GOP insiders and unfavorably by 38 percent.

Other, lesser-known candidates received generally favorable ratings, with two exceptions: Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, who has sharply criticized the war, and Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado, an outspoken foe of the president's immigration policy, were seen more negatively than positively. There was little difference among Democrats and Republicans over the prospect of Americans electing a black, Hispanic or woman president; strong majorities in both parties said the country was ready.

Republicans were more optimistic about the chance of electing a Mormon, which likely reflects good feelings for Romney. Nearly 8 in 10 GOP insiders said the country would elect a Mormon president, compared with 48 percent of Democrats.