Former Secretary of State and Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton testifies Oct. 22 before the House Select Committee on Benghazi on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. A poll indicated a majority of voters believe Clinton acted unethically or illegally in her handling of emails while secretary of state. Photo by Molly Riley/UPI | License Photo

WASHINGTON, Nov. 13 (UPI) -- Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton acted illegally or unethically by using a private email server to conduct government business, most Americans said in a new poll.

The McClatchy-Maris poll, released Thursday, indicated 40 percent of respondents felt her actions were unethical but legal. Another 28 percent called them illegal.


A third group, 27 percent of respondents, said she did nothing wrong.

Overall, 68 percent of respondents have suspicions and lingering doubts about her actions, misgivings which could follow her through her campaign for the presidency. Of those who said she acted unethically but legally, 46 percent identified themselves as Democrats or independents.

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Clinton has been questioned over her use of a private email account -- routed through a private computer server -- instead of a government account while she served as secretary of state. An FBI investigation was begun in the summer after classified information was found in emails transmitted by the server, prompting questions about the possibility of national security risks.

Clinton apologized but said none of the information sent or received through the email account was deemed classified at the time.

The poll indicated 56 percent of Republicans believe Clinton acted illegally, while 6 percent of Democrats agreed, as did 27 percent of independents. A majority of nearly every demographic group, including men, women, Latinos, whites and voters under 29, called her actions unethical but legal.

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The survey of 1,465 adults was conducted Oct. 29-Nov. 4 through landline and cellphone calls by The Marist Poll, in partnership with the McClatchy Company. There was a 2.6 percent margin of error.