Civitas poll shows unfavorable responses to politicians and Barber

By Francis De Luca, Civitas Institute, July 22, 2013.

A new Civitas Flash Poll indicates that as the General Assembly’s Long Session nears its close, voters have an ambivalent view of individuals and parties involved in North Carolina politics. Only Gov. Pat McCrory (R) is viewed favorably by voters. Thirty-two percent of voters interviewed in this Interactive Voice Response Poll conducted by SurveyUSA were cellphone-only respondents.

• 37 percent of respondents had a favorable view of McCrory, 30 percent had an unfavorable view, and 21 percent were neutral.
• The General Assembly as a body registered a 25 percent favorable rating compared to 39 percent unfavorable; 26 percent of voters were neutral.
• 32 percent of those polled viewed legislative Republicans favorably while 40 percent viewed them unfavorably, and 20 percent were neutral.
• Democrats in the legislature got a split decision: Both favorable and unfavorable ratings were 33 percent, with 27 percent neutral.
• Rev. William Barber, head of the state NAACP and leader of the Monday protests, was viewed favorably by 14 percent and unfavorably by 21 percent; 27 percent were neutral and 39 percent had no opinion.

“After months of legislative battling, the glimmer of good news for politicians may be that so many people are still neutral,” Civitas President Francis X. De Luca said. “However, our polling has also showed strong public support for the new tax reform package that legislators and the governor worked out. When the dust settles, voters may be a bit more upbeat about the state’s political leadership.”

On the results for William Barber, “While it is interesting that such a well-publicized figure got a neutral or ‘no opinion’ response from two-thirds of the respondents, it is indicative that his activities have created a negative image overall among those voters with an opinion.” De Luca said. “One other observation is that despite all the media attention, the protests really don’t interest average people very much.”

The Civitas Flash Poll of 603 North Carolina adults had a margin of error of plus-minus 4.1 percent and was taken July 17-18, 2013.