Sept. 11, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Francis De Luca (919) 834-2099 francis.deluca@nccivitas.org
Unaffiliated Voters Are Often Misunderstood, Civitas Chief Says
RALEIGH – The latest Civitas Poll of registered, unaffiliated North Carolina voters helps illuminate this crucial voting bloc.
“This poll of voters is the fastest-growing part of the electorate, but as a group they are often poorly understood,” Civitas President Francis De Luca said. “This poll, which we conduct every year in August, will hopefully help explain what they are really thinking.”
Mr. De Luca is available for media interviews. To arrange one, call Demi Dowdy at 919-834-2099.
The poll surveyed 400 registered North Carolina voters, 30 percent of whom were reached on cell phones. The survey was taken August 10-12 and had a margin of error of plus/minus 4.9 percent.
Following is the exact wording of the relevant questions:
Do you feel things in North Carolina are generally headed in the right direction or have gotten off on the wrong track?
29% Right Direction
49% Wrong Track
21% Don’t Know/Unsure
1% Refused
And if the election for State Legislature were held today, would you be voting for the… (ROTATE)
28% Republican
30% Democratic
14% Neither
27% Don’t Know
1% Refused
When you think about voting for North Carolina offices like the state legislature, what issue or problem should be their highest priority? (RANDOMIZE)
25% Economy and jobs
36% Improving public education
5% Holding down taxes
8% Reducing healthcare costs
5% Government Corruption
5% Moral Issues
5% Budget/Spending
7% Illegal Immigration
1% All of them/ Everything/ All of the Above
3% Other (DO NOT READ)
1% Not sure (DO NOT READ)
— Refused (DO NOT READ)
In general, are you MOST concerned with… (ROTATE:1-5)
22% Economic issues, jobs and the economy
8% Fiscal issues, like taxes and spending
15% Foreign affairs and national security issues, like terrorism, the wars overseas and border security
26% Social issues, like education, health care and the environment
12% Moral issues, like abortion, family values and same sex marriages
15% All/Combo
— Other (Specify)
1% None/Don’t Know/Refused
In your own words can you please tell me why you are registered as an Independent or Unaffiliated? (OPEN END)
23% Do not want to be told to vote for a certain party/ To vote for whoever I want/ To keep my options open/ To vote in either primary/ Don’t want to be committed to one party/ Don’t like voting a straight ticket
23% Vote for the person not the party/ Vote on the person’s views on issues/ Vote for who I think will do the best job representing me
20% Do not agree with either party/ Do not want to be associated with either party/ Don’t think any one party is right/ Parties need to work together/ I’m in the middle/ I can see both sides
11% Don’t like political parties/ Don’t like the two party system (Non-specific)
5% Not happy with politicians/ Can’t trust them
3% Have always been Unaffiliated/ Independent
2% I lean Republican
2% Was a Democrat/ Do not agree with my previous party anymore
1% Was a Republican/ Do not agree with my previous party anymore
1% Personal Choice/ Personal reasons
— I lean Democrat
— Disagree with President Obama/ President made me change my mind
— Do not want to be bothered with mail/ E-mail/ Door-step visits/ Phone calls
2% Other
15% None/ Nothing/ Not registered Unaffiliated/ Am a Republican/ Democrat
2% Don’t Know
On fiscal issues, like taxes and government spending, do you generally consider yourself to be a liberal, moderate or a conservative?
12% Liberal
45% Moderate
42% Conservative
2% Don’t Know/Refused
On social issues, like abortion and marriage, do you generally consider yourself to be a liberal, moderate or a conservative?
32% Liberal
29% Moderate
36% Conservative
3% Don’t Know/Refused
And, in partisan elections, which of the following would best describe the way you vote? (ROTATE TOP-TO-BOTTOM/BOTTOM TO TOP)
33% Total Republican
38% Total Democrat
9% Always vote Democrat
29% Vote Democrat more often than Republican
27% Vote Republican more often than Democrat
6% Always vote Republican
22% Both equally – Split ticket
4% Not Sure/ Don’t Know
2% Refused
Which of the following most reflects your beliefs regarding the impact of taxes: (ROTATE)
52% Tax increases harm economic growth and cause jobs to be lost
19% Tax increases have no real effect on the economy and job creation
18% Tax increases will improve the economy by adding revenue to government
9% Don’t Know/ No Opinion
— Refused
Do you support or oppose exploring for oil and natural gas on land and off the coast of North Carolina?
50% Total Support
43% Total Oppose
28% Strongly Support
22% Somewhat Support
10% Somewhat Oppose
33% Strongly Oppose
7% Don’t Know/ No Opinion
— Refused
* Worded slightly different in previous polls
The state wants to build new roads, university buildings, and upgrade parks, ports and other state facilities. There are several competing proposals on how to finance this effort. Which of the following comes closest to your opinion on how the state should pay for this effort? (ROTATE)
39% The state should hold a referendum to allow voters to decide if it should issue taxpayer backed bonds which will be paid back over 25 years plus interest.
51% The state should use its annual revenue and surpluses to pay for the improvements on a pay as you go basis instead of borrowing to pay for the improvements.
4% The state should not spend any more money on infrastructure and cut taxes.
5% Don’t Know/ Need More Information
— Refused
The North Carolina Constitution defines marriage as between one man and one woman and as the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized in the state. Do you agree or disagree with this definition?
48% Total Agree
48% Total Disagree
39% Strongly Agree
9% Somewhat Agree
14% Somewhat Disagree
35% Strongly Disagree
3% Undecided/Don’t Know
1% Refused
Do you support or oppose the death penalty for those who are found guilty of First-degree murder?
62% Total Support
29% Total Oppose
43% Strongly Support
19% Somewhat Support
11% Somewhat Oppose
19% Strongly Oppose
8% Don’t Know/ No Opinion
— Refused
Do you support or oppose the Affordable Care Act, otherwise known as ObamaCare?
47% Total Support
46% Total Oppose
27% Strongly Support
20% Somewhat Support
9% Somewhat Oppose
38% Strongly Oppose
7% Don’t Know/ No Opinion
— Refused
* Worded slightly different in previous polls
Would you say you are a liberal or conservative in your political beliefs?
21% Total Liberal
41% Total Moderate
37% Total Conservative
9% Very Liberal
12% Somewhat Liberal
41% Moderate
18% Somewhat Conservative
19% Very Conservative
1% Don’t Know/Refused
In terms of political party, do you identify more with (ROTATE) the Republican Party, the Democratic Party or something else?
28% Total Republican
30% Total Democrat
15% Strong Republican
12% Not So Strong Republican
16% Not So Strong Democrat
14% Strong Democrat
41% Independent/Unaffiliated/Other
1% Don’t Know/Refused
Which of the following statements comes closest to describing your own opinion on the issue of abortion…(ROTATE)
54% Total Pro-Life
41% Total Pro-Choice
13% I am pro-life and oppose abortions under all circumstances
41% I am pro-life but believe exceptions should be made in cases such as rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother.
18% I am pro-choice, but I believe in parental notification and banning partial birth abortion and government funding
23% I am pro-choice without exception
3% Don’t Know/Something else
1% Refused
Totals may not equal 100 percent, because of rounding.
Crosstabs for poll here.
About the poll: This poll of 400 registered voters in North Carolina was conducted August 10-12, 2015 by National Research, Inc., of Holmdel, NJ. All respondents were part of a fully representative sample of registered general election voters in North Carolina. Thirty 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 (2012, 2014) or be newly registered to vote since November 1, 2014. 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 +-4.9% of the “True Values.”
For more information on Civitas polling, see http://www.nccivitas.org/category/poll/ or contact Demi Dowdy or Jim Tynen at 919-834-2099 or jim.tynen@nccivitas.org.
Founded in 2005, the Civitas Institute is a Raleigh, NC-based 501(c3) non-profit policy organization committed to creating a North Carolina whose citizens enjoy liberty and prosperity derived from limited government, personal responsibility and civic engagement. To that end, Civitas develops and advocates for conservative policy solutions to improve the lives of all North Carolinians. Towards that end, Civitas provides research, information and training to:
- Empower citizens to become better civic leaders and more informed voters;
- Educate emerging public leaders, enabling them to be more effective in the democratic process; and
- Inform elected officials about citizen-based, free-market solutions to problems facing North Carolinians.
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