February 21, 2013 - Virginia Voters Back Photo Id For Voting 3-1, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Let Home-School Kids Play On School Teams, Voters Say Word format PDF format Watch Video: Assistant Director Tim Malloy discusses poll results FLV File - For Website Original .MP4 File - For Broadcast Virginia voters say 75 - 23 percent that voters should be required to bring photo ID to cast their ballot on Election Day, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Voters also say 68 - 25 percent that home-schooled children should be able to play athletics on public school teams, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University survey finds. Voters also support 71 - 23 percent the restoration of voting rights for non-violent felons who have served out their prison sentence. Support for the photo ID requirement is 95 - 4 percent among Republicans, 57 - 41 percent among Democrats, 78 - 20 percent among independent voters, 79 - 19 percent among white voters and 66 - 34 percent among black voters. There is no gender gap as 77 percent of men and 74 percent of women support the idea. "There appears to be overwhelming support among Virginia voters for a number of measures that went through the legislative process," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "The voter photo ID bill is similar to ones that have been passed - and are being challenged in court - in a number of states. Generally, polls show similar high support levels for such requirements in a number of states in which the issue has been raised. "Although the measure enjoys broad public support - including 57 percent of Democrats - it has been controversial, with Democratic and African-American leaders opposing the legislation," said Brown. "The measure has majority support from all demographic groups surveyed, including black voters by 66 - 34 percent." Click here to link to a downloadable video of Quinnipiac University Polling Institute Assistant Director Tim Malloy discussing photo ID requirements for voting, home schooling, and Presidential and Senate approval. The legislation that would allow home-schooled kids to play on the athletic teams fielded by their local public schools scored almost as well with the voting public and just as uniformly. Like the photo ID measure, majorities of every demographic group support the idea: 72 percent of Republicans, 65 percent of independent voters, 64 percent of Democrats, 68 percent of women, 67 percent of men, 68 percent of white voters, 64 percent of black voters and 70 percent of voters with children in public schools. The idea of restoring felons' voting rights once prison time is served follows much the same model, but its support is a bit less even across the spectrum. Only 58 percent of Republicans back it, but 83 percent of Democrats and 73 percent of independent voters do. There is no gender gap, as 69 percent of men and 73 percent of women back the measure. There is a racial gap as 67 percent of white voters and 90 percent of black voters back the measure. President, Senate Approvals The racial gap also is evident, as has been the case since his first inauguration, when it comes to President Barack Obama, who has an overall 51 - 46 percent job approval rating. He gets a negative 40 - 57 percent approval from white voters and a positive 89 - 8 percent approval from black voters. The same is true of gender, with women giving him a thumbs-up 57 - 40 percent, while men give him a negative 44 - 53 percent. Virginia's two U.S. Senators, Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, both enjoy solid public support. Warner, the state's most popular politician, gets a 58 - 28 percent approval rating while freshman Kaine gets a 50 - 33 percent score. From February 14 - 18, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,112 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, Virginia and the nation as a public service and for research. For more information or RSS feed, visit http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, or call (203) 582-5201, or follow us on Twitter. 9. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Mark Warner is handling his job as United States Senator? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Approve 58% 45% 73% 57% 59% 57% 57% 64% Disapprove 28 42 17 27 29 27 30 22 DK/NA 14 13 11 16 12 16 14 14 WHITE.............................................. COLLEGE DEG BornAgnEv Yes No Prot Cath Men Wom Yes No Approve 59% 55% 52% 60% 59% 55% 50% 57% Disapprove 31 29 35 28 31 28 36 29 DK/NA 11 16 13 12 10 17 14 15 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HSHOLD INC AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <50K 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Approve 61% 56% 59% 59% 55% 64% 53% 57% Disapprove 28 28 21 32 33 19 34 29 DK/NA 11 16 19 9 12 17 13 14 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Mark Warner is handling his job as United States Senator? (*High also 64% Sep 2011, **Low also 57% Jun 2011) APPROVE....... High Low Feb 21 Jan 09 Nov 14 Jul 18 Jun 06 Feb 09 Jul 18 2013 2013 2012 2012 2012 2012* 2012** Approve 58 59 60 57 60 64 57 Disapprove 28 27 25 24 21 22 24 DK/NA 14 13 16 19 19 14 19 10. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Tim Kaine is handling his job as United States Senator? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Approve 50% 25% 78% 50% 48% 52% 46% 68% Disapprove 33 56 12 29 37 29 36 21 DK/NA 17 20 10 21 15 18 18 12 WHITE.............................................. COLLEGE DEG BornAgnEv Yes No Prot Cath Men Wom Yes No Approve 51% 44% 38% 52% 44% 49% 33% 49% Disapprove 33 38 44 36 41 32 47 36 DK/NA 16 19 17 12 15 20 20 16 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HSHOLD INC AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <50K 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Approve 54% 48% 53% 55% 48% 58% 46% 49% Disapprove 30 34 30 29 39 32 35 33 DK/NA 16 18 18 16 13 10 19 18 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Tim Kaine is handling his job as United States Senator? Feb 21 Jan 09 2013 2013 Approve 50 48 Disapprove 33 30 DK/NA 17 22 11. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Approve 51% 7% 94% 45% 44% 57% 40% 89% Disapprove 46 91 4 50 53 40 57 8 DK/NA 4 2 2 5 3 4 3 4 WHITE.............................................. COLLEGE DEG BornAgnEv Yes No Prot Cath Men Wom Yes No Approve 45% 37% 32% 40% 33% 46% 23% 41% Disapprove 52 60 65 58 66 50 75 56 DK/NA 3 3 3 2 1 4 3 2 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HSHOLD INC AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <50K 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Approve 53% 49% 58% 52% 42% 56% 49% 50% Disapprove 44 47 38 45 56 40 49 46 DK/NA 3 4 4 2 3 4 2 4 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President? (*High also 52% Nov 2012) APPROVE....... High Low Feb 21 Jan 10 Nov 14 Jul 19 Jun 07 Jan 10 Sep 15 2013 2013 2012 2012 2012 2013* 2011 Approve 51 52 52 45 48 52 40 Disapprove 46 44 44 51 47 44 54 DK/NA 4 3 4 4 5 3 6 17. Do you think voters should or should not be required to show a photo identification before they are allowed to vote on Election Day in Virginia? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Yes 75% 95% 57% 78% 77% 74% 79% 66% No 23 4 41 20 22 24 19 34 DK/NA 1 - 2 1 1 1 2 1 WHITE.............................................. COLLEGE DEG BornAgnEv Yes No Prot Cath Men Wom Yes No Yes 71% 85% 85% 84% 80% 79% 90% 80% No 27 14 13 15 19 19 9 19 DK/NA 1 2 2 1 1 2 1 1 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HSHOLD INC AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <50K 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Yes 66% 81% 78% 75% 74% 76% 79% 72% No 32 18 21 23 26 23 21 26 DK/NA 2 1 2 2 - 1 1 2 18. Do you think home-schooled students in Virginia should or should not be allowed to play on public school sports teams? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Allowed to play 68% 72% 64% 65% 67% 68% 68% 64% Not allowed 25 21 28 27 27 23 24 32 DK/NA 7 7 7 8 6 8 7 4 WHITE.............................................. COLLEGE DEG BornAgnEv Yes No Prot Cath Men Wom Yes No Allowed to play 66% 70% 67% 81% 68% 69% 70% 71% Not allowed 27 22 26 15 25 24 23 24 DK/NA 7 8 7 4 7 8 6 6 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HSHOLD INC AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <50K 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Allowed to play 64% 70% 74% 64% 65% 73% 74% 60% Not allowed 30 22 19 29 30 25 23 28 DK/NA 6 8 7 8 6 2 3 12 HAVE KIDS...... <18 InPubSch Allowed to play 73% 70% Not allowed 24 27 DK/NA 3 3 19. Do you think people who are convicted of non-violent felonies in Virginia should or should not be automatically allowed to vote after they've served their sentences? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Allowed to vote 71% 58% 83% 73% 69% 73% 67% 90% Not allowed 23 35 12 22 28 19 27 8 DK/NA 6 7 5 5 3 8 6 1 WHITE.............................................. COLLEGE DEG BornAgnEv Yes No Prot Cath Men Wom Yes No Allowed to vote 66% 68% 61% 70% 63% 70% 65% 62% Not allowed 28 26 31 25 33 22 29 31 DK/NA 7 6 7 5 4 9 5 7 COLLEGE DEG ANNUAL HSHOLD INC AGE IN YRS....... Yes No <50K 50-100 >100K 18-34 35-54 55+ Allowed to vote 69% 73% 76% 76% 67% 78% 71% 70% Not allowed 25 22 21 21 26 17 25 24 DK/NA 7 5 3 4 7 5 4 6 Demographic Summary
