RALEIGH, N.C. – The latest polling conducted by the Civitas Institute indicates Democrats will open the legislative session with an advantage in public trust.
The poll says Republicans trail in that arena. Public perception of their ability to handle issues, ranging from holding down taxes to health care, is unlike previous General Assembly sessions.
“Democrats have succeeded in convincing the voters that they have the solutions to the problems confronting North Carolina,” said Civitas Institute Executive Director Francis De Luca. “Now the question becomes, can they deliver?”
Republicans used to be known for their anti-tax stands, but in this poll, they have even lost to Democrats on the issue of taxes. According to the poll, 45 percent of voters said they believed Democrats will do a better job of keeping taxes low; 34 percent indicated they thought Republicans will hold the line; 11 percent stated they did not endorse either party; eight percent said they were not sure; and five percent said they trusted both parties equally.
Health care has continued to be a strong issue for Democrats, and voters again confirmed the party’s dominance on this issue. Sixty-five percent of respondents said they give Democrats the green light at keeping health care affordable; 18 percent said they believed the Republicans can; seven percent said they were not sure; five percent said they agreed with both parties equally; and the remaining five percent said they were not sure.
“Despite what current Democratic members of the General Assembly may or may not have promised in last fall’s campaign races, President Obama has in fact spoken for them to the public,” De Luca noted. “The campaign rhetoric set high expectations for many inside the borders of North Carolina; they expect economic conditions to improve, unemployment to go down, education to get better and all around improvement.”
Full text of questions:
“For each of the following, please tell me which political party in North Carolina, Democrat or Republican, will do a better job on each issue in the upcoming session of the General Assembly:
“Making Health Care More Affordable?”
Democratic – 65%
Republican – 18%
Both Equally – 5%
Neither – 7%
Not Sure – 5%
“Creating Jobs and Growing the Economy”
Democratic – 58%
Republican – 21%
Both Equally – 9%
Neither – 5%
Not Sure – 7%
“Improving Public Education”
Democratic – 58%
Republican – 23%
Both Equally – 11%
Neither – 4%
Not Sure – 5%
“Bringing Change to North Carolina Government”
Democratic – 56%
Republican – 18%
Both Equally – 10%
Neither – 7%
Not Sure – 5%
“Improving Roads and Highways”
Democratic – 51%
Republican – 21%
Both Equally – 14%
Neither – 5%
Not Sure – 10%
“Holding Taxes Down”
Democratic – 45%
Republican – 34%
Both Equally – 5%
Neither – 9%
Not Sure – 8%
The study of 600 registered voters was conducted Jan. 19-22. All respondents were part of a fully representative sample of registered voters in North Carolina. For purposes of this study, voters we interviewed had to have voted in either the 2004, 2006 or 2008 general elections or were newly registered voters since 2008.
The confidence interval associated with a sample of this size is such that:
95 percent of the time, results from 600 interviews (registered voters) will be within +-4% of the “True Values.” True Values refer to the results obtained if it were possible to interview every person in North Carolina who had voted in either the 2004, 2006 or 2008 general elections or were newly registered voters since 2008.
