Nov. 4, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Francis De Luca (919) 834-2099 Francis.DeLuca@nccivitas.org
RALEIGH – A new Civitas Institute poll indicates that over the past year North Carolina voters have grown starkly more pessimistic about the direction of the nation. Their view of the where North Carolina is headed, while still negative, is much less negative and has not changed dramatically over the past year.
Seventy-five percent of voters think the United States is on the wrong track, and only 19 percent feel the nation is going in the right direction. One year ago the percentage of voters said we’re on the wrong track was 55 percent, compared to a “right direction” of 40 percent.
In contrast, 57 percent of registered voters think the state is on the wrong track, while 33 percent think it is headed in the right direction. About a year ago a Civitas Poll showed a 50 percent wrong track/35 percent right direction split.
The survey of 600 registered North Carolina voters was done Oct. 20-24. The margin of error was plus-minus 4 percent.
“That three-quarters of registered voters think the nation is on the wrong track is an ominous sign,” said Civitas President Francis De Luca. “Also worrisome is how fast pessimism is growing. The percentage of voters thinking the United States on the wrong track has jumped 20 points in the past year, while the amount of those thinking it is going in the right direction has been cut in half.”
He added, “Though voters’ view of the state’s prospects is somewhat gloomy, it’s not nearly as bad as their outlook for the nation. And it hasn’t had the precipitous drop that attitudes towards the nation have had.”
Text of questions*:
Thinking about the United States for a moment, do you feel things in the United States are generally headed in the right direction or have gotten off on the wrong track?
10/12 10/13
40% 19% Right Direction
55% 75% Wrong Track
5% 6% Don’t Know/Unsure
And now just thinking about North Carolina, Do you feel things in North Carolina are generally headed in the right direction or have gotten off on the wrong track?
11/12 10/13
35% 33% Right Direction
50% 57% Wrong Track
15% 10% Don’t Know
*Due to rounding, subtotals may differ from final sums.
Crosstabs here.
This poll of 600 registered voters in North Carolina was conducted October 20-24, 2013 by National Research, Inc. of Holmdel, NJ. All respondents were part of a fully representative sample of registered general election voters in North Carolina. Twenty-five percent of the respondents were cell phone-only users. For purposes of this study, voters interviewed had to have voted in at least one of the past two general elections (2010, 2012) or be newly registered to vote since November 7, 2012.
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.”
Civitas conducts the only regular live-caller polling of North Carolina voters. For more information on Civitas polling, see http://www.nccivitas.org/category/poll/.
The Civitas Institute is a policy institute based in Raleigh, N.C. More information is available at www.nccivitas.org, or contact Jim Tynen at (919) 834-2099 or james.tynen@nccivitas.org.
[…] are profoundly disenchanted with the nation’s direction, and that makes national officeholders vulnerable at the ballot box,” said Civitas President […]