Listen to this articleHere is pollster Patrick Gonzales’ synopsis of the results of a statewide poll his firm took last week. The full results of the survey, including breakdowns by party, race, gender and region can be found by clicking here.
Memorial Day’s upon us, yet it feels like February 2nd as we emerge from our burrows like Punxsutawney Phil. If we see our shadows, does this mean six more weeks of winter?
We asked Marylanders their opinions on issues surrounding the coronavirus calamity, which has engulfed the world for the past 3 months.
Statewide, 22% say the restrictions put in place in March to prevent the coronavirus from spreading have “gone too far,” while 15% say the restrictions “haven’t gone far enough,” and the majority of Maryland voters – 63% – think the restrictions that have been put in place to prevent the coronavirus from spreading “have been about right.”
Further, 64% believe the stay-at-home measures that have been put in place to protect people have been worth it, while 22% think these measures have caused more harm than good, placing unnecessary burdens on people and businesses in Maryland.
Worried
Maryland citizens are worried, though not exceedingly so, about becoming seriously ill from the coronavirus. Statewide, 57% are concerned about becoming ill from the virus (17% “very concerned” and 40% “somewhat concerned”), while 41% are not concerned.
Up to this point, Marylanders are generally in sync with the actions taken by government to try to contain the virus.
However, 53% across the state say that they or someone close to them have lost a job or had income reduced due to the coronavirus crisis; 64% in the rural areas of Maryland. The economic impact of the coronavirus in the coming months will likely begin to take a more conspicuous role in shaping voter attitudes.
Hogan’s approval up
Gov. Larry Hogan has benefitted from unease toward the coronavirus and its increased infection potential in Maryland, boosting his approval rating 8 points in the past 3 months. Among voters, 78% overall approve of the job Hogan is doing – 42% strongly approve – while only 18% disapprove of the job he is doing.
Eighty percent of women and 76% of men approve of the job Larry Hogan is doing as governor, as do 77% of voters under the age of fifty and 78% of those fifty and older. Seventy-nine percent of African American voters and 78% of whites approve of his job performance.
By party, 82% of Democrats, 74% of independents, and 71% of Republicans approve of the job Hogan is doing as governor.
Trump down, Biden up
In the Free State, Donald Trump, like Rodney Dangerfield, gets no respect.
Statewide, 40% approve of the job Trump is doing as president, while 58% disapprove of the job he is doing.
Eighty-four percent of black voters, 83% of Democrats, and 68% of Marylanders under the age of fifty disapprove of the job Donald Trump is doing as president.
In a November election match-up with presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden, Trump trails by 24 points in Maryland. Statewide, 59% say they would vote for Biden “if the election were held today,” while 35% say they’d vote for Trump, with 6% undecided.
This poll was conducted by Gonzales Research & Media Services from May 19th through May 23rd, 2020. A total of 810 registered voters in Maryland, who indicated that they are likely to vote in the 2020 general election, were queried by live telephone interviews, utilizing both landline (34%) and cell phone (66%) numbers. A cross-section of interviews was conducted throughout the state, reflecting general election voting patterns.
The margin of error (MOE), per accepted statistical standards, is a range of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. If the entire population was surveyed, there is a 95% probability that the true numbers would fall within this range.
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