Pennsylvania (PA) Poll * August 5, 2008 * Voters Don't Think Lawmakers W - Quinnipiac University

Home> Institutes and Centers> Quinnipiac University Polling Institute> Pennsylvania (PA)> Release Detail

August 5, 2008 - Voters Don't Think Lawmakers Will Stop Corruption, Quinnipiac University Pennsylvania Poll Finds; Chris Matthews Plays Hardball With Specter

Word format By a 53 - 11 percent margin, Pennsylvania voters say State House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese should step down because of his alleged involvement in "Bonusgate," according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Results are consistent among Democrats, Republicans and independent voters.
Only 24 percent of Pennsylvania voters say they are "very confident" or "somewhat confident" that the State Legislature will enact legislation to end corruption, while 74 percent are "not too confident" or "not confident at all," the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. Still, voters say 76 - 18 percent that Gov. Ed Rendell should call a special session of the Legislature this summer to work on legislative reform to combat corruption.
Apparently untouched by the controversy, Gov. Rendell gets a 54 - 37 percent approval rating," little changed from his approval ratings over the last year, but down from his all-time high 61 - 30 percent score February 7, 2007.
Voters disapprove 51 - 32 percent of the job the State Legislature is doing, and 73 percent blame both Democrats and Republicans equally for corruption.
"Pennsylvania voters are clearly fed up with the legislature; say both parties are responsible for corruption, even though only Democrats were indicted in Bonusgate, and want House Majority Leader Bill DeWeese to step down for his role in the scandal," said Clay F. Richards, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
"They are looking to Gov. Ed Rendell to convene a special session to handle corruption, but have no faith that lawmakers can clean their own house."
Pennsylvania voters disapprove 47 - 40 percent of the way Rendell is handling the state budget and disapprove 57 - 26 of the Legislature's handling of the budget.
Voters oppose 60 - 29 percent a proposal to allow a Spanish company to pay $13 billion to operate the Pennsylvania Turnpike, even with a cap on toll increases. Voters statewide also oppose 63 - 29 percent a proposal to put tolls on Interstate 80. Opposition to both measures crosses all political lines.
"Voters continue to give Gov. Rendell a positive approval rating even though they don't like his handling of the budget and overwhelmingly reject his proposals, including billions for the Turnpike and tolls on Interstate 80 - the centerpieces of his program to raise revenue for the state's transportation system," Richards said.
U.S. Senate Race
Incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter leads TV news commentator Chris Matthews, a possible Democratic challenger, 41 - 36 percent. Democrats back Matthews 56 - 24 percent, as Republicans back Sen. Specter 63 - 16 percent and independent voters go with the Republican 44 - 27 percent.
Voters approve 59 - 29 percent of the job Specter is doing and give him a 55 - 26 percent favorability. Matthews gets a 28 - 15 percent favorability, as 55 percent of voters don't know enough about him to form an opinion.
"Sen. Arlen Specter remains the most respected statewide public official in Pennsylvania, but his age and health problems could make him vulnerable to a challenge from Hardball's Chris Matthews. Specter leads by only five points in a theoretical matchup, but there is a large undecided vote and many voters don't know enough about Matthews to have an opinion," Richards said.
From July 30 - August 3, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,580 Pennsylvania voters with a margin of error of +/- 2.5 percentage points.
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.
1. MSNBC's Hardball host Chris Matthews is considering running against Pennsylvania Senator Arlen Specter in 2010, according to news reports. If the 2010 election for United States Senator were being held today, and the candidates were Chris Matthews the Democrat and Arlen Specter the Republican, for whom would you vote?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Matthews 36% 16% 56% 27% 31% 41% 34% 62% Specter 41 63 24 44 46 36 43 22 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 1 1 1 3 2 1 2 - WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 2 2 1 3 2 2 2 - DK/NA 19 18 18 23 19 20 19 16 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Matthews 45% 45% 33% 33% 32% 36% 34% Specter 38 32 38 47 44 38 44 SMONE ELSE(VOL) 2 1 1 1 1 3 1 WLDN'T VOTE(VOL) 1 - 6 1 2 2 1 DK/NA 14 22 22 18 21 21 20
2. Is your opinion of -- Chris Matthews favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Favorable 28% 22% 36% 23% 29% 28% 27% 40% Unfavorable 15 24 7 16 19 11 16 - Hvn't hrd enough 55 51 56 58 49 60 55 58 REFUSED 2 3 1 3 2 1 2 2 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Favorable 30% 34% 28% 34% 26% 22% 25% Unfavorable 14 13 13 17 13 13 15 Hvn't hrd enough 56 54 56 48 58 63 57 REFUSED 1 - 3 1 3 2 3
3. Is your opinion of -- Arlen Specter favorable, unfavorable or haven't you heard enough about him?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Favorable 55% 61% 50% 53% 58% 51% 57% 38% Unfavorable 26 27 26 26 29 24 26 32 Hvn't hrd enough 16 10 20 17 10 21 15 26 REFUSED 3 2 4 4 3 4 3 4 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Favorable 59% 50% 48% 65% 58% 44% 54% Unfavorable 26 27 23 19 25 38 28 Hvn't hrd enough 13 19 23 13 11 17 15 REFUSED 2 4 6 2 6 2 3
4. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Ed Rendell is handling his job as Governor?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Approve 54% 36% 66% 53% 54% 53% 53% 64% Disapprove 37 55 26 35 39 36 38 28 DK/NA 9 9 8 12 7 11 9 9 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 46% 78% 52% 68% 47% 40% 43% Disapprove 42 19 34 24 43 54 47 DK/NA 13 3 14 8 10 6 11
TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Ed Rendell is handling his job as Governor? * Also 46% on 10/5/2005, 4/22/2004, 3/18/2004 and 12/16/2003
Highest Lowest Approve Approve Aug 5 Feb 28 Nov 7 Aug 22 May 30 Feb 7 Apr 5 2008 2008 2007 2007 2007 2007 2006* Approve 54 52 53 53 55 61 46 Disapprove 37 34 36 37 36 30 37 DK/NA 9 13 11 10 9 9 17
5. Do you approve or disapprove of the way the state legislature is handling its job?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Approve 32% 30% 37% 28% 33% 32% 31% 45% Disapprove 51 50 48 58 55 47 52 46 DK/NA 17 20 15 14 12 22 17 9 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 32% 37% 30% 45% 28% 24% 26% Disapprove 55 49 54 36 51 61 55 DK/NA 13 14 16 18 21 15 19
TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way the state legislature is handling its job?
Highest Lowest Approve Approve Aug 5 Feb 28 Nov 7 Aug 22 May 30 Apr 10 Oct 5 2008 2008 2007 2007 2007 2003 2005 Approve 32 37 35 30 34 49 26 Disapprove 51 42 48 55 47 24 60 DK/NA 17 21 17 15 18 27 14
6. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Arlen Specter is handling his job as United States Senator?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Approve 59% 64% 56% 57% 62% 56% 60% 50% Disapprove 29 28 32 26 30 29 28 40 DK/NA 12 8 12 17 8 15 11 10 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 61% 56% 49% 69% 61% 52% 58% Disapprove 27 35 30 22 28 42 28 DK/NA 11 9 21 8 11 6 14
TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Arlen Specter is handling his job as United States Senator? * Also 60% on 5/22/2003 & 2/21/2003
Highest Lowest Approve Approve Aug 5 Feb 28 Nov 8 Aug 22 May 30 Jul 13 Apr 22 2008 2008 2007 2007 2007 2005* 2004 Approve 59 54 54 58 56 60 47 Disapprove 29 31 31 32 34 30 36 DK/NA 12 14 14 10 11 10 17
7. 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 Wht Blk Approve 47% 39% 55% 44% 48% 46% 46% 54% Disapprove 25 32 19 26 28 22 25 22 DK/NA 28 29 27 29 24 32 29 23 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 55% 43% 47% 43% 48% 49% 47% Disapprove 27 22 25 26 17 37 22 DK/NA 18 34 28 31 35 14 31
TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Bob Casey Jr. is handling his job as United States Senator?
Highest Lowest Approve Approve Aug 5 Feb 28 Nov 8 Aug 22 May 30 Feb 28 Mar 28 2008 2008 2007 2007 2007 2008 2007 Approve 47 50 49 49 47 50 46 Disapprove 25 20 21 23 21 20 18 DK/NA 28 30 30 28 32 30 35
8. 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 Wht Blk Very satisfied 4% 4% 4% 4% 5% 3% 4% - Smwht satisfied 44 40 45 44 44 43 44 45 Smwht dissatisfied 32 35 33 30 32 33 32 32 Very dissatisfied 19 20 17 20 18 20 19 20 DK/NA 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 3 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Very satisfied 2% 4% 5% 8% 2% 2% 3% Smwht satisfied 32 46 39 61 45 32 41 Smwht dissatisfied 44 31 30 22 36 28 36 Very dissatisfied 22 15 26 8 16 37 19 DK/NA 1 3 1 1 1 - 1
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?
Aug 5 Aug 22 May 12 Apr 5 Feb 13 Dec 8 Oct 5 2008 2007 2006 2006 2006 2005 2005 Very satisfied 4 4 5 4 4 4 4 Smwht satisfied 44 51 46 50 49 50 42 Smwht dissatisfied 32 31 28 29 30 33 33 Very dissatisifed 19 13 19 14 15 13 20 DK/NA 1 1 1 2 1 1 1
9. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Ed Rendell is handling the state budget?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Approve 40% 27% 49% 40% 42% 39% 40% 45% Disapprove 47 59 39 47 47 47 47 46 DK/NA 13 14 12 13 11 14 13 9 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 34% 54% 40% 58% 38% 23% 30% Disapprove 54 36 47 27 48 64 57 DK/NA 12 11 12 14 14 13 13
TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Ed Rendell is handling the state budget?
Aug 5 Aug 22 Apr 5 Jul 13 Apr 22 Oct 16 Aug 6 2008 2007 2006 2004 2004 2003 2003 Approve 40 43 35 45 31 39 42 Disapprove 47 44 45 38 43 41 40 DK/NA 13 12 19 17 26 20 18
10. Do you approve or disapprove of the State Legislature's handling of the state budget?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Approve 26% 27% 28% 19% 28% 23% 25% 25% Disapprove 57 54 56 63 58 55 57 61 DK/NA 18 19 16 18 14 21 18 13 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Approve 15% 32% 27% 32% 31% 23% 20% Disapprove 73 53 58 47 47 65 58 DK/NA 12 15 15 20 22 12 22
TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the State Legislature's handling of the state budget?
Aug 5 Aug 22 Oct 16 Aug 6 2008 2007 2003 2003 Approve 26 27 29 27 Disapprove 57 57 47 50 DK/NA 18 16 24 23
11. A Spanish toll roads company has offered nearly 13 billion dollars to operate the Pennsylvania turnpike for 75 years. The proposal includes a cap on toll increases and protects the turnpike's union workers at least until their contract ends in 2011. Do you support or oppose this proposal?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Support 29% 25% 33% 27% 29% 30% 28% 45% Oppose 60 65 55 62 65 55 62 42 DK/NA 11 10 12 11 7 15 11 13 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Support 30% 40% 32% 26% 28% 27% 26% Oppose 62 44 63 60 62 65 62 DK/NA 8 15 5 14 10 8 12
12. Do you support or oppose putting tolls on Interstate 80 across Pennsylvania?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Support 29% 24% 33% 27% 28% 29% 29% 34% Oppose 63 68 59 64 66 60 63 58 DK/NA 8 7 8 9 6 11 8 8 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Support 34% 36% 21% 33% 17% 32% 25% Oppose 56 51 73 58 77 64 66 DK/NA 10 13 5 8 6 4 9
TREND: Do you support or oppose putting tolls on Interstate 80 across Pennsylvania?
Aug 5 Nov 7 2008 2007 Support 29 28 Oppose 63 62 DK/NA 8 10
13. How much have you heard or read about Bonusgate, the legislative payroll bonus scandal - a lot, some, not much, or nothing at all?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk A lot 20% 23% 18% 23% 25% 17% 21% 15% Some 32 33 32 29 32 32 33 25 Not Much 21 21 20 23 20 22 22 17 Nothing at all 26 23 30 24 23 29 23 43 DK/NA - 1 - 1 - 1 - - Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl A lot 29% 12% 14% 13% 18% 30% 27% Some 44 22 30 29 36 34 33 Not Much 15 16 24 27 23 18 22 Nothing at all 12 50 32 30 23 19 18 DK/NA - - - 1 - - 0
14. Which political party do you blame for political corruption in the state legislature the Democrats or the Republicans or both parties equally?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Democrats 9% 20% 3% 6% 10% 8% 10% 2% Republicans 15 2 27 8 12 18 12 40 Both equally 73 74 66 85 76 70 75 53 DK/NA 3 3 3 1 2 4 3 5 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Democrats 10% 4% 8% 7% 9% 14% 12% Republicans 17 25 13 14 14 13 11 Both equally 72 66 74 75 77 69 73 DK/NA 1 5 4 3 1 4 4
15. Do you think House Majority leader Bill DeWeese should step down because of Bonus Gate?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Yes 53% 54% 53% 53% 56% 50% 53% 58% No 11 11 9 14 13 11 12 9 DK/NA 35 35 38 33 31 39 35 33 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Yes 64% 51% 51% 45% 48% 61% 55% No 10 10 10 14 8 15 12 DK/NA 27 39 39 41 44 24 33
16. There are now anti-corruption proposals in the state legislature including such things as banning bonuses for staff, prohibiting gifts, limiting perks, restraining lobbyist influence, and campaign finance reform. How confident are you that the state legislature will pass new laws needed to end corruption? Very confident, somewhat confident, not too confident, or not confident at all?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Very confident 3% 3% 3% 3% 5% 2% 3% 10% Somewhat confident 21 19 25 15 20 22 19 36 Not too confident 46 49 47 42 43 48 47 38 Not confident at all 28 28 23 38 31 26 29 16 DK/NA 2 1 2 2 1 2 2 - Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Very confident 4% 3% 4% 3% 6% 2% 3% Somewhat confident 23 23 20 24 22 8 21 Not too confident 48 41 44 48 46 48 45 Not confident at all 23 32 28 23 24 41 30 DK/NA 2 - 3 2 1 1 2
17. Do you think Governor Rendell should call a special session of the legislature this summer on legislative reform to combat corruption?
Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Yes 76% 73% 82% 71% 74% 78% 76% 80% No 18 21 13 22 21 15 18 14 DK/NA 6 5 5 7 5 7 6 5 Alghny Philly NthEst SthEst NthWst SthWst Cntrl Yes 80% 78% 78% 73% 69% 79% 77% No 18 17 15 22 21 15 16 DK/NA 2 6 6 5 10 6 7