Raleigh, N.C. – Support for the death penalty is at an all time high among North Carolina voters, according to a new poll released today by the Civitas Institute.
Seventy-one percent said they favor the death penalty for first-degree murder convictions. Twenty-five percent of voters said they oppose it, and 3 percent said they did not have an opinion, according to the live caller poll of 600 registered voters.
This is the highest level of support for the death penalty in the history of Civitas polling, surpassing the record 70 percent-20 percent margin of support in an April 2010 poll. Additionally, this remains a bipartisan issue among North Carolina voters with 83 percent of Republicans, 75 percent of unaffiliated voters, and 61 percent of Democrats in support.
“The death penalty issue continues to garner overwhelming support among the state’s voters in spite of the harmful actions of special interest groups and some elected officials to refuse justice for victims and their families,” said Civitas Institute President Francis De Luca. “Regardless of recent revelations of the inept management, culture and practices of the State Bureau of Investigation crime lab, support for the death penalty remains strong.”
Despite a de-facto moratorium on the death penalty due to numerous legislative hindrances, voters favor allowing executions to resume for convicted felons by a 66 percent-29 percent margin. Four percent of voters said they do not know.
The Civitas Poll is the only monthly live-caller poll of critical issues facing North Carolina. For more information on Civitas polling see www.nccivitas.org/media/poll-results/.
Full text of questions:
“Do you favor or oppose the death penalty for those convicted of first-degree murder in North Carolina?”
Strongly Favor – 52%
Somewhat Favor – 19%
Somewhat Oppose – 8%
Strongly Oppose – 17%
No Opinion – 3%
Total Favor – 71%
Total Oppose – 25%
“As you may know, currently no executions for those sentenced to the death penalty can occur due to a loophole in North Carolina law. Do you favor or oppose allowing executions to resume for those convicted felons sentenced to death?”
Strongly Favor – 48%
Somewhat Favor – 18%
Somewhat Oppose – 11%
Strongly Oppose – 18%
No Opinion – 4%
Total Favor – 66%
Total Oppose – 29%
Click here for full results and crosstabs.
This poll of 600 registered voters in North Carolina was conducted December 15-16, 2010 by Public Opinion Strategies of Alexandria, Virginia. This survey has a margin of error of +4.0% in 95 out of 100 cases. To ensure a representative sample, interviews were conducted proportional to voter registration figures for each county in the state based on the most recent figures compiled by the State Board of Elections.
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