Elon University Poll

On the same day in which a bipartisan immigration bill was introduced in the U.S. Senate, we released data indicating that a majority of North Carolina residents believe that immigrants are a benefit to the state, rather than a burden.

Fifty-four percentage of respondents said that immigrants are a benefit because of their hard work and job skills vs. 36 percent who said they are a burden because they use public services.

It is sharply divided by political affiliation with 66 percent of Democrats saying immigrants are a benefit compared with 53 percent of Independents and 41 percent of Republicans.

These findings are similar to our February poll.

– John Robinson

The State Senate has approved a bill that would effectively restart executions, ending a de facto moratorium since 2006.

The News & Observer, in its coverage of the Senate’s repeal of the Racial Justice Act, observed: “It comes at a time when public support for executions seems to be waning: No jury has sentenced anyone to death in more than a year.”

That’s one measurement. Another is the Elon University Poll. The April results show that 61.2 percent favor the death penalty for murder vs. 30.1 percent that oppose it.

Not surprisingly, the differences of opinion are stark when political party is revealed. Eighty-six percent of Republicans responded that they favored the death penalty for murder compared with 62 percent of Independents and 44 percent of Democrats.

It also separates whites (69 percent in favor) and African Americans (41 percent in favor).

Interestingly, only 48.4 percent of respondents said they feel the death penalty is applied fairly vs. 38.6 percent who think it is applied unfairly and 12.8 percent who answered “don’t know.”

There are currently 152 inmates on death row in N.C.

– John Robinson

A couple of bills winding their way through the General Assembly would have the effect of restricting access to abortions, if passed. One would make it illegal for doctors to perform abortions because of the sex of the fetus. Another would require abortion providers to have admitting privileges at a local hospital and remain at the site until the patient is able to leave.

We didn’t ask about either of these bills specifically. However, we did ask N.C. residents if state laws “should make access to an abortion more difficult or less difficult.” It was tight, but 42.4 percent of respondents said access should be more difficult vs. 37.1 percent who said less difficult and 9.3 percent said about the same.

“Consistent with national trends, a gender gap exists that is even more pronounced by marital status,” Assistant Poll Director Jason Husser said. “Twenty-eight percent of single women wanted more restrictions compared with 45.5 percent of all men. Similarly, those who attend church weekly are more than twice as likely to support restrictions as those who never attend church.”

The News & Observer suggested that the same-sex bill may advance because it is sponsored by Rep. Ruth Samuelson of Charlotte, a House GOP leader.  However, Gov. Pat McCrory has said he won’t support further restrictions on abortion.

– John Robinson

While North Carolinians are divided on same-sex marriage as law, they are a bit more decisive on the issue of the Boy Scouts’ ban of homosexuals as Scouts.

In the April Elon University Poll, 49 percent of respondents said they support an end to the ban and 39 percent oppose it. Eleven percent said they don’t know.

In January, the Boy Scouts of America announced that it was considering the ban further and would announce a decision later this year.

– John Robinson

Same-sex marriage divides North Carolina the way it divides the rest of the nation. And there’s no clear consensus among North Carolinians. When asked if they support or oppose same-sex marriage, 45 percent of respondents said they oppose it and 44 percent said they support it.

To a great extent, it’s a moot issue today, given that last year N.C. voters passed a constitutional amendment saying that marriage is between one man and one woman. As politicians discuss how their views are “evolving,” it is unclear that North Carolinians’ are.

Digging deeper in our poll, people are divided by their:

Politics: 57 percent of Democrats, 49 percent of Independents and 21 percent of Republicans said they support same sex-marriage.

Age: 55 percent of 18- 30-year olds support it, declining steadily to 30 percent of 65 years and older.

Gender: 50 percent of women support it vs. 36 percent of men.

Race: 44 percent of whites support it vs. 36 percent of blacks.

We also asked if respondents had a relative or friend who was gay or lesbian. Sixty-eight percent said they do. ”Only 30 percent of those without a
gay or lesbian friend or relative supported gay marriage compared to 49 percent
support among those with a gay or lesbian friend or relative,” said Poll Director Ken Fernandez.

Nationally, last month Pew Research took a look at several recent polls and concluded: “All of the major national polls now find more supporters than opponents of same-sex marriage. But there is no consensus in the polling as to just how many Americans now actually think that same-sex marriage should be legal.”

– John Robinson

In honor of yesterday being Tax Day, we happily announce that 46 percent of North Carolinians in our poll said they pay about the right amount of federal taxes.

That’s the good news. Unfortunately, 49 percent said they think they pay more than their fair share. Not surprisingly, only 3 percent said they think they pay less, perhaps because they thought we were going to send the IRS after them. (That last part is a joke, and we aren’t.)

Also not surprisingly, the more people make, the more often they said they pay too much. That sentiment peaks between the ages of 41-50, (61 percent) and then drops to 31 percent for the age group 65 and above, presumably because of the benefits of Social Security and Medicare.

Sixty percent of Republicans said they paid more than their fair share, compared with 47 percent of Independents and 43 percent of Democrats. Again, hardly surprising.

– John Robinson

Some groups say that the likelihood of a marriage ending in divorce is between 40 percent and 50 percent.

Some North Carolina legislators are debating a bill called the Healthy Marriages Act, that  would require a two-year waiting period for a divorce, instead of the current one year. It also requires that couples get counseling and live together during that period.

North Carolina residents responding to the latest Elon University Poll don’t think much of that. 68.9 percent oppose changing the current law versus 23.4 percent who support the proposed change.

Supporters of the bill believe that North Carolina’s divorce rate is too high and that making it more difficult to get a divorce will lower the rate. But as WRAL points out: “North Carolina’s one-year waiting period is already longer than most other Southeast states. Georgia and Tennessee, for example, require only a few weeks before a divorce is granted, and Florida couples can file online to have their marriages dissolved. Virginia and South Carolina require no more than a year’s wait, and Alabama has no waiting period.”

The poll results suggest that most North Carolinians would just as soon the General Assembly kept its nose out of that tent.

“This is a policy proposal with high opposition even among groups which some people might expect would support it,” Assistant Poll Director Jason Husser said. “Consider white born-again Christian Republicans who are opposed to gay marriage and want more abortion restrictions – they oppose the divorce extension 53 percent to 42 percent.”

It is also opposed by Democrats (75 percent), Independents (69 percent) and Republicans (65 percent).

It is clear that, while people don’t like divorce, they don’t want to prolong the process of it, either.

– John Robinson