November 15, 2012 - Pennsylvania Voters Mixed On Global Warming, Sandy, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Obama Gets Better Grades Than Gov Word format Watch Video: Assistant Director Tim Malloy discusses poll results Clip Information and Download: FLV File - For Website (1920x1080 / 44.7MB) Original .MP4 File - For Broadcast (1920x1080 / 292.6MB) There are big partisan and gender divides as Pennsylvania voters consider climate change: A total of 63 percent of voters are "very concerned" or "somewhat concerned" about global warming, with 82 percent of Democrats very or somewhat concerned, 36 percent of Republicans concerned and 65 percent of independent voters concerned, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. These same voters say 51 - 43 percent, however, that Hurricane Sandy and the snowstorm one week later were not caused by climate change, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. . Women say 50 - 44 percent that these storms were caused by climate change, while men say 58 - 35 percent that they were not. Democrats believe climate change caused the storms 59 - 34 percent, while Republicans say no 74 - 21 percent and independent voters say climate change is not to blame 51 - 43 percent. President Barack Obama outscores Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett on overall job approval and on the response to Hurricane Sandy. The president's job approval rating is 52 - 45 percent, compared to Gov. Corbett who gets a 40 percent approval and a 38 percent disapproval. A total 74 percent of Pennsylvania voters say Obama's response to Hurricane Sandy was "excellent" or "good," compared to 61 percent for Corbett. "Did climate change make Hurricane Sandy the monster it was? Pennsylvania voters say no. There are differences between Democrats and Republicans and between men and women, but voters do seem concerned about global warming," said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "But voters just don't connect the dots from global warming to Sandy," Malloy added. "With positive marks for his handling of Hurricane Sandy, Gov. Tom Corbett moves from a negative job approval to a break-even. "They give President Barack Obama even better scores." Men are divided on Obama 48 - 49 percent, while women approve 56 - 41 percent. Approval is 87 - 12 percent among Democrats, while Republicans disapprove 88 - 8 percent. Independent voters approve by a slim 50 - 46 percent margin. Corbett's approval is 42 - 38 percent among men, while women split 37 - 37 percent. Republicans approve 61 - 16 percent, while independent voters split 37 - 37 percent and Democrats disapprove 54 - 26 percent. U.S. Sen. Robert Casey Jr. gets a 49 - 37 percent job approval rating, with 43 - 28 percent for Sen. Pat Toomey. By a 55 - 41 percent margin, Pennsylvania voters are "generally optimistic...about the next four years with Barack Obama as president." The economy will get better in the next four years, 47 percent say, while 31 percent say it will get worse and 20 percent say it will stay the same. Obama and Democrats in Congress will make a good faith effort to work with Republicans on important issues, voters say 57 - 37 percent. Republicans will not make a good faith effort, voters say 50 - 43 percent. "Pennsylvanians give President Obama a hearty vote of confidence, voicing optimism about the course he'll chart for next four years and the future of the economy under his guidance," Malloy said. From November 9 - 13, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,489 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 2.5 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, Virginia 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 Tom Corbett is handling his job as Governor? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Approve 40% 61% 26% 37% 42% 37% 20% 36% 61% Disapprove 38 16 54 37 38 37 61 43 16 DK/NA 23 23 20 26 20 25 19 22 23 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 33% 33% 29% 46% 47% 38% 43% Disapprove 48 41 50 31 30 32 36 DK/NA 19 26 21 23 23 30 21 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Tom Corbett is handling his job as Governor? APPROVE....... High Low Nov 15 Jun 27 Jun 12 Mar 28 Mar 15 Sep 29 Jun 27 2012 2012 2012 2012 2012 2011 2012 Approve 40 35 36 41 41 50 35 Disapprove 38 50 47 38 41 32 50 DK/NA 23 15 17 22 18 18 15 2. Do you approve or disapprove of the way the state legislature is handling its job? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Approve 36% 47% 32% 30% 35% 37% 24% 36% 47% Disapprove 43 31 50 47 48 39 58 47 31 DK/NA 21 23 17 23 17 24 18 17 23 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 28% 41% 33% 41% 35% 35% 36% Disapprove 50 44 49 36 43 47 42 DK/NA 22 16 19 22 22 18 22 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way the state legislature is handling its job? (*Low also 25% Dec 2009) APPROVE....... High Low Nov 15 Jun 12 Mar 15 Sep 29 Aug 03 Apr 10 May 13 2012 2012 2012 2011 2011 2003 2010* Approve 36 27 29 31 34 49 25 Disapprove 43 51 54 54 50 24 59 DK/NA 21 21 17 16 16 27 16 3. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bob Casey Jr. is handling his job as United States Senator? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Approve 49% 21% 71% 50% 47% 52% 70% 61% 22% Disapprove 37 65 16 37 42 32 17 28 66 DK/NA 14 14 13 13 11 16 13 11 12 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 54% 68% 53% 49% 45% 37% 45% Disapprove 35 19 32 38 40 48 40 DK/NA 11 13 15 13 15 14 15 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bob Casey Jr. is handling his job as United States Senator? APPROVE....... High Low Nov 15 Jun 12 Mar 14 Sep 28 Aug 02 May 28 Dec 16 2012 2012 2012 2011 2011 2009 2010 Approve 49 51 46 46 48 56 39 Disapprove 37 29 27 30 29 21 29 DK/NA 14 20 26 24 23 23 32 4. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Pat Toomey is handling his job as United States Senator? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Approve 43% 61% 29% 44% 47% 40% 26% 43% 59% Disapprove 28 14 38 30 29 27 44 28 18 DK/NA 29 25 33 26 23 34 30 28 23 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 42% 42% 39% 45% 45% 40% 45% Disapprove 30 35 32 29 19 29 24 DK/NA 28 23 30 26 35 31 31 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Pat Toomey is handling his job as United States Senator? APPROVE....... High Low Nov 15 Jun 12 Mar 14 Sep 28 Aug 02 Jun 15 Jun 12 2012 2012 2012 2011 2011 2011 2012 Approve 43 40 42 43 44 45 40 Disapprove 28 27 28 32 31 28 27 DK/NA 29 32 31 26 25 27 32 5. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Approve 52% 8% 87% 50% 48% 56% 87% 59% 18% Disapprove 45 88 12 46 49 41 11 38 79 DK/NA 3 4 2 4 3 3 1 4 3 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <30K 30-50 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Approve 53% 51% 64% 46% 54% 46% 64% 49% 50% Disapprove 44 45 33 49 43 52 32 48 47 DK/NA 2 4 2 6 2 2 4 3 3 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President? APPROVE....... High Low Nov 15 Jun 27 Jun 12 May 03 Mar 28 May 04 Apr 28 2012 2012 2012 2012 2012 2009 2011 Approve 52 45 46 50 45 66 42 Disapprove 45 49 49 46 50 29 53 DK/NA 3 6 4 4 5 5 5 6. In general, how satisfied are you with the way things are going in Pennsylvania today; are you very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, or very dissatisfied? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Very satisfied 5% 4% 7% 3% 4% 5% 4% 6% 3% Smwht satisfied 46 45 49 42 45 46 43 48 43 Smwht dissatisfied 31 30 29 37 31 31 35 31 30 Very dissatisfied 17 21 14 17 18 16 16 14 22 DK/NA 2 1 2 1 1 2 1 1 2 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Very satisfied 4% 7% 5% 6% 5% 3% 4% Smwht satisfied 45 51 38 48 41 38 49 Smwht dissatisfied 34 27 32 30 30 37 31 Very dissatisfied 17 13 22 13 24 20 16 DK/NA - 2 3 3 1 2 1 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <30K 30-50 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Very satisfied 3% 6% 8% 4% 3% 3% 2% 6% 5% Smwht satisfied 46 45 44 42 50 48 57 42 43 Smwht dissatisfied 38 28 29 34 32 32 33 31 31 Very dissatisfied 12 19 18 18 13 17 7 19 19 DK/NA 1 2 1 2 2 1 - 2 2 TREND: In general, how satisfied are you with the way things are going in Pennsylvania today; are you very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat dissatisfied, or very dissatisfied? VERY+SMWHT SAT High Low Nov 15 Jun 12 Mar 15 Sep 29 Aug 03 Jun 05 Dec 15 2012 2012 2012 2011 2011 2002 2010 Very satisfied 5 3 3 2 3 8 2 Smwht satisfied 46 40 40 41 38 60 35 Smwht dissatisfied 31 39 38 37 36 22 37 Very dissatisfied 17 17 19 19 22 8 25 DK/NA 2 2 - 1 1 3 1 7. Which one of the following is your main source of political news and information; television, Internet, newspaper, radio, talking with others, or social media like Facebook and Twitter? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Television 53% 55% 59% 42% 47% 59% 48% 57% 51% Internet 19 17 15 29 25 15 22 17 21 Newspaper 13 12 15 13 15 12 14 16 10 Radio 7 10 4 9 8 6 7 5 11 Talking with others 3 2 3 2 2 3 4 2 3 Social media 2 3 2 3 1 4 3 2 2 DK/NA 2 1 1 3 3 1 1 2 2 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Television 48% 59% 61% 39% 51% 55% 58% Internet 21 14 15 30 19 16 17 Newspaper 13 14 18 13 16 12 11 Radio 13 5 4 9 3 7 7 Talking with others 3 2 - 3 7 2 3 Social media 2 4 1 2 - 6 3 DK/NA - 2 1 4 3 3 1 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <30K 30-50 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Television 39% 59% 62% 60% 49% 41% 42% 50% 60% Internet 29 15 12 12 25 28 30 25 11 Newspaper 16 12 12 15 12 17 5 11 19 Radio 10 6 4 5 10 9 6 10 5 Talking with others 2 3 5 3 2 2 5 1 3 Social media 2 3 6 1 1 2 9 1 1 DK/NA 1 2 - 4 1 2 3 2 2 8. Are you generally optimistic or pessimistic about the next four years with Barack Obama as president? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Optimistic 55% 15% 86% 55% 53% 57% 87% 63% 21% Pessimistic 41 84 10 40 44 39 9 33 76 DK/NA 4 2 4 5 3 4 4 4 3 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <30K 30-50 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Optimistic 58% 54% 65% 51% 57% 51% 65% 54% 52% Pessimistic 40 41 30 45 41 47 29 44 44 DK/NA 2 5 5 4 2 2 6 3 4 9. By the end of Barack Obama's second term in office, do you expect the economy to be better than it is today, worse than it is today, or about the same? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Better 47% 11% 76% 44% 45% 50% 76% 53% 18% Worse 31 63 6 33 32 29 7 20 63 About the same 20 24 17 21 22 19 15 25 17 DK/NA 2 2 1 2 2 2 2 2 1 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <30K 30-50 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Better 51% 45% 58% 42% 48% 44% 53% 46% 46% Worse 29 31 24 31 31 31 20 33 33 About the same 19 21 17 23 20 24 27 20 19 DK/NA 1 2 1 4 1 1 1 2 2 10. Do you think the Republicans in Congress will or will not make a good faith effort to cooperate with President Obama and the Democrats on issues that are important to you? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Will make effort 43% 55% 35% 43% 40% 46% 30% 43% 53% Will not make effort 50 38 58 51 55 46 66 50 39 DK/NA 7 7 7 6 5 8 3 7 7 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <30K 30-50 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Will make effort 47% 42% 44% 46% 42% 43% 37% 38% 49% Will not make effort 49 50 48 48 51 54 58 56 43 DK/NA 4 8 8 6 7 3 5 6 9 11. Do you think President Obama and the Democrats in Congress will or will not, make a good faith effort to cooperate with the Republicans on issues that are important to you? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Will make effort 57% 23% 86% 54% 52% 62% 84% 65% 28% Will not make effort 37 72 10 41 44 32 13 30 68 DK/NA 5 5 3 5 4 6 2 5 4 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <30K 30-50 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Will make effort 61% 56% 66% 56% 57% 54% 65% 55% 57% Will not make effort 36 38 29 37 39 42 29 42 38 DK/NA 3 6 5 6 3 3 6 4 5 12. Would you say that Barack Obama has strong leadership qualities or not? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Yes 58% 20% 88% 55% 55% 61% 89% 66% 26% No 39 77 10 43 44 36 9 32 72 DK/NA 2 3 2 2 2 3 2 2 1 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <30K 30-50 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Yes 60% 57% 67% 53% 61% 52% 78% 57% 52% No 38 40 31 43 38 47 22 41 45 DK/NA 2 3 2 5 1 1 - 2 3 TREND: Would you say that Barack Obama has strong leadership qualities or not? Nov 15 May 01 2012 2008 Yes 58 63 No 39 27 DK/NA 2 10 13. Would you say that Tom Corbett has strong leadership qualities or not? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Yes 47% 61% 38% 45% 48% 46% 35% 45% 60% No 35 21 45 39 37 34 49 40 22 DK/NA 18 18 18 17 15 20 16 16 18 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME... AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <30K 30-50 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Yes 46% 47% 40% 45% 51% 50% 47% 47% 46% No 40 34 41 34 35 39 29 35 39 DK/NA 14 20 20 21 15 11 24 18 15 14. How would you rate President Obama's overall response to Hurricane Sandy, excellent, good, not so good or poor? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Excellent 34% 11% 55% 31% 30% 38% 56% 38% 14% Good 40 41 38 41 44 37 38 45 36 Not so good 11 20 3 14 11 11 3 9 20 Poor 12 25 2 12 13 11 3 6 26 DK/NA 2 3 1 3 2 2 - 1 3 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Excellent 34% 63% 35% 42% 19% 21% 26% Good 43 36 39 35 45 40 44 Not so good 9 1 13 9 11 20 14 Poor 12 1 11 12 22 17 12 DK/NA 1 - 1 2 4 2 4 City Suburb Rural Excellent 51% 34% 22% Good 37 41 42 Not so good 6 9 18 Poor 6 13 14 DK/NA 1 2 4 15. How would you rate Governor Corbett's overall response to Hurricane Sandy, excellent, good, not so good or poor? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Excellent 11% 13% 11% 8% 10% 12% 10% 12% 11% Good 50 52 47 54 51 50 51 49 54 Not so good 15 12 18 13 16 14 18 15 13 Poor 5 4 6 6 6 5 8 4 5 DK/NA 18 19 17 18 17 19 14 19 18 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Excellent 8% 17% 11% 12% 6% 12% 10% Good 45 52 43 51 48 51 55 Not so good 17 20 18 12 13 12 15 Poor 8 3 10 5 8 5 3 DK/NA 22 8 17 19 25 20 17 City Suburb Rural Excellent 14% 11% 9% Good 45 53 52 Not so good 20 14 13 Poor 7 4 7 DK/NA 14 18 20 16. How concerned are you about global warming or climate change; very concerned, somewhat concerned, not too concerned, or not concerned at all? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Very concerned 29% 10% 43% 29% 27% 30% 53% 28% 13% Smwht concerned 34 26 39 36 32 36 36 42 21 Not too concerned 20 33 13 15 21 19 6 19 29 Not concerned 17 31 4 19 19 15 5 9 36 DK/NA - 1 - - - 1 - 1 - Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Very concerned 25% 43% 33% 34% 25% 19% 23% Smwht concerned 30 44 38 35 24 30 35 Not too concerned 26 9 17 17 21 25 23 Not concerned 18 4 12 14 30 26 19 DK/NA 1 - - - - 1 - City Suburb Rural Very concerned 37% 30% 20% Smwht concerned 40 34 30 Not too concerned 12 20 25 Not concerned 10 15 25 DK/NA - 1 - 17. Do you think Hurricane Sandy and the recent snow storm that followed are the result of climate change or don't you think so? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Lib Mod Con Climate change 43% 21% 59% 43% 35% 50% 65% 47% 21% Don't think so 51 74 34 51 58 44 29 46 74 DK/NA 6 5 7 6 7 6 6 7 5 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Climate change 40% 58% 44% 44% 31% 41% 40% Don't think so 56 31 50 49 59 56 55 DK/NA 4 12 6 7 9 4 5 City Suburb Rural Climate change 55% 41% 35% Don't think so 36 53 61 DK/NA 9 7 4 Demographic Summary
