February 2, 2011 - Florida Voters Say Wait And See On New Gov, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; But They Don't Believe His No-Tax Pledge Word format More Florida voters are taking a wait-and-see attitude on their new governor, Rick Scott, who gets a 35 - 22 percent job approval rating with 43 percent undecided, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. By 56 - 29 percent, voters are generally optimistic about the next four years with Scott as governor. But Florida voters aren't thrilled with his plans to cut at least 5 percent of the state work force, calling it a "bad idea" 46 - 42 percent, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. Voters, however, say 64 - 28 percent that state workers should contribute to their pensions, which they do not do now. Although by 52 - 34 percent voters say they prefer cutting services to raising taxes to meet the state's budget shortfall, they say 48 - 44 percent that Scott should not have promised to do so without raising taxes. By 58 - 26 percent, voters don't think Scott will be able to make good on the promise. Scott gets a 28 - 24 percent favorability rating from voters, while 45 percent say they don't know enough about him to form an opinion. "'Too soon to tell,' many Florida voters are saying about their new governor one month into his term. Interestingly, he has a better rating for his job performance than when voters are asked if they view him favorably or not," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "This may reflect the negativity of the campaign and the omnipresent charges by his opponents questioning his honesty as a corporate executive." Not surprisingly Scott gets much better job approval among Republicans, 52 - 11 percent, and independent voters, 33 - 18 percent, than he does among Democrats, who disapprove 39 - 18 percent. He does better among men, 38 - 23 percent, than among women, 33 - 21 percent. Florida voters are convinced about the seriousness of the state budget problems, with 64 percent calling them "very serious" and another 30 percent labeling them "somewhat serious." Despite their budget concerns they back Scott's plan to cut property and business taxes by about $2 billion, calling it a "good idea" 50 - 43 percent. "Voters say they see a serious problem with the state's finances yet they aren't happy with the idea of laying off state employees to save money. And they back cutting taxes which will require even greater spending cuts to balance the budget," said Brown. Scott, whose net worth is in the billions, has said he will only take a $1 salary and pay for trips around the state out of his own pocket. By 53 - 6 percent, voters say that makes them view him more favorably. There have been numerous complaints from the news media that their access to Scott has been less than with past governors. More than half of voters, 58 percent, say the amount of access Scott has given has been about right, with 22 percent saying there hasn't been enough and 6 percent saying there was too much. Asked how much their opinion about the governor is affected by his accessibility to the news media, 28 percent say "a great deal;" 30 percent say "some;" 22 percent say "not much" and 16 percent say "not at all." "Although voters are basically split on his plans for state worker layoffs, they like his plan to have them contribute to their own retirement and the fact he is taking just a $1 salary," Brown added. "Voters don't seem concerned that portions of the news media have complained about their access to him." From January 25 - 31, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,160 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percentage points. Live interviewers call land lines and cell phones. The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio and the nation as a public service and for research. For more data or RSS feed- http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, call (203) 582-5201, or follow us on Twitter. 1. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Rick Scott is handling his job as Governor? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Approve 35 52 18 33 38 33 44 Disapprove 22 11 39 18 23 21 11 DK/NA 43 36 42 50 39 47 45 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Approve 42 37 39 31 27 Disapprove 14 22 21 18 30 DK/NA 44 41 41 51 44 5. Are you generally optimistic or pessimistic about the next four years with Rick Scott as Governor? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Optimistic 56 77 35 56 55 57 70 Pessimistic 29 15 45 29 31 28 15 DK/NA 15 8 19 15 14 15 16 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Optimistic 61 61 56 68 45 Pessimistic 24 25 33 23 35 DK/NA 15 14 11 8 20 6. In general, how satisfied are you with the way things are going in Florida today? Are you very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, or very dissatisfied? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Very satisfied 3 5 2 2 2 3 4 Smwht satisfied 44 47 34 48 43 45 46 Smwht dissatisfied 34 33 39 31 32 35 38 Very dissatisfied 19 14 24 19 22 16 12 DK/NA 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Very satisfied 4 2 3 3 3 Smwht satisfied 53 51 38 49 35 Smwht dissatisfied 27 29 39 28 39 Very dissatisfied 14 18 20 19 22 DK/NA 2 1 1 1 2 TREND: In general, how satisfied are you with the way things are going in Florida today? Are you very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, or very dissatisfied? (*combined High also 63% Sep 2004) VERY+SMWHT.... High Low Feb 02 Jun 09 Apr 15 Feb 18 Jan 21 Feb 24 Apr 10 2011 2009 2009 2009 2009 2005* 2008 Very satisfied 3 6 3 3 4 15 5 Smwht satisfied 44 45 43 40 42 48 32 Smwht dissatisfied 34 33 34 33 34 22 34 Very dissatisfied 19 15 19 22 20 15 28 DK/NA 1 2 1 2 1 1 1 11. Is your opinion of Rick Scott favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Favorable 28 48 7 24 28 27 38 Unfavorable 24 10 46 20 23 24 10 Hvn't hrd enough 45 40 43 52 47 44 49 REFUSED 3 2 3 4 1 5 3 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Favorable 37 30 26 34 19 Unfavorable 17 22 23 23 32 Hvn't hrd enough 44 47 46 41 46 REFUSED 3 1 5 1 4 TREND: Is your opinion of Rick Scott favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him? Feb 02 Aug 19 Jul 30 Jun 09 2011 2010 2010 2010 Favorable 28 28 29 31 Unfavorable 24 40 30 22 Hvn't hrd enough 45 30 38 46 REFUSED 3 2 2 1 18. How serious do you think Florida's budget problems are very serious, somewhat serious, not too serious, or not at all serious? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Very serious 64 60 66 66 62 66 58 Smwht serious 30 37 26 28 30 30 36 Not too serious 3 2 5 3 6 1 5 Not at all serious 1 - 2 1 - 2 - DK/NA 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Very serious 55 63 66 62 69 Smwht serious 40 30 29 30 22 Not too serious 3 2 2 5 5 Not at all serious 1 1 - 3 1 DK/NA 1 4 2 - 2 19. To balance the state budget, if you had to choose, would you prefer raising taxes or cutting government programs and services? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Raising taxes 34 24 47 36 34 35 23 Cutting services 52 70 31 52 56 48 66 DK/NA 14 6 21 13 10 17 11 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Raising taxes 35 28 28 37 43 Cutting services 51 56 53 59 47 DK/NA 14 16 19 4 10 20. To help balance the state budget Rick Scott has said that he will lay off at least five percent of the state work force. Do you think this is a good idea or a bad idea? Union Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Hsholds Good idea 42 57 19 48 50 35 31 Bad idea 46 32 68 42 40 52 52 DK/NA 12 11 13 10 9 14 17 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Good idea 42 46 42 47 37 Bad idea 47 41 48 38 51 DK/NA 12 14 10 15 11 21. Governor Scott says that state workers, who currently do not contribute to their retirement funds, should pay part of the cost. Do you think this is a good idea or a bad idea? Union Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Hsholds Good idea 64 72 51 69 68 60 57 Bad idea 28 21 39 25 26 30 35 DK/NA 8 7 10 6 6 10 9 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Good idea 59 62 71 77 59 Bad idea 34 30 23 19 29 DK/NA 8 7 6 4 13 22. There has been talk in Tallahassee of increasing legal gambling in Florida to help reduce the budget deficit. Do you think this is a good idea or a bad idea? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Good idea 56 56 55 59 65 49 43 Bad idea 39 40 40 36 30 46 53 DK/NA 5 4 5 5 5 5 4 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Good idea 56 62 48 55 61 Bad idea 38 33 47 43 35 DK/NA 6 6 5 2 5 23. Governor Rick Scott has pledged that in trying to balance the state's budget deficit that he will not raise taxes or fees. Do you think Rick Scott should have made this pledge or not? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Yes 44 52 32 43 48 39 53 No 48 43 57 48 45 50 41 DK/NA 9 5 11 8 6 11 6 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Yes 40 51 42 47 41 No 53 41 52 49 45 DK/NA 7 8 6 5 14 24. Do you think Rick Scott will be able to keep this pledge or not? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Yes 26 37 14 23 27 26 33 No 58 50 69 62 60 58 51 DK/NA 15 13 17 15 14 17 16 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Yes 25 29 27 27 24 No 57 56 58 61 61 DK/NA 18 15 15 12 16 25. Governor Scott wants to cut about 2 billion dollars in property and business taxes to make Florida more attractive to businesses and attract jobs. Others say the state can't afford to lose the revenue. Do you think these tax cuts are a good idea or a bad idea? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Good idea 50 61 28 55 55 45 57 Bad idea 43 34 60 38 41 44 31 DK/NA 8 5 12 7 3 11 11 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Good idea 52 54 46 54 47 Bad idea 41 39 48 38 44 DK/NA 8 7 6 8 10 26. Governor Scott is taking a 1 dollar salary and has said he will pay for his flights around the state out of his own pocket. Do these things make you think more favorably of him, less favorably of him, or doesn't it make a difference? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl More favorably 53 65 38 51 50 55 72 Less favorably 6 3 13 4 6 6 2 Doesn't make diff 40 32 48 42 42 37 26 DK/NA 2 1 1 3 2 1 - North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE More favorably 58 48 56 52 48 Less favorably 4 7 9 4 6 Doesn't make diff 37 44 33 44 43 DK/NA 1 1 2 - 3 27. How much is your opinion of a Governor affected by how accessible he is to the news media - A great deal, some, not much, or not at all? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl A great deal 28 29 25 30 33 23 28 Some 30 33 30 28 27 32 32 Not much 22 23 22 20 19 24 23 Not at all 16 13 16 17 16 15 14 DK/NA 5 2 7 5 5 5 3 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE A great deal 30 22 29 28 30 Some 28 34 31 27 28 Not much 18 24 25 20 21 Not at all 19 16 12 22 15 DK/NA 6 4 3 3 7 28. Do you think Governor Scott has been too accessible to the news media, not accessible enough to the news media, or has Governor Scott's accessibility to the news media been about right? WtBrnAgn Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Evnglcl Too accessible 6 4 6 7 5 8 4 Not accessible enough 22 14 30 24 25 19 18 About right 58 75 41 56 58 57 71 DK/NA 14 7 22 13 12 16 7 North/ PnHnd Bay Cntrl SthW SthE Too accessible 7 7 3 2 10 Not accessible enough 19 20 23 22 24 About right 60 63 57 71 49 DK/NA 14 10 17 5 17
