Nebraska Voters’ Outlook is commissioned by and conducted in partnership with Patinkin Research Strategies, LLC October 11-13, 2022, among approximately 400 registered voters across the state. Total results are available here. View the research memo here. View the press release here.
Perceptions Indicate That the State is Off-track
Just four-in-ten Nebraskans (41%) believe the state is moving in the “right direction,” while half believe Nebraska is headed in the “wrong direction” (50%) as noted in Figure 1 below.
A majority of Nebraskan’s disagree with the assertion that Nebraska’s state’s government is doing enough to help hard working families get ahead (61% “no”). See Figure 2 below.
Public Opinion on Policy Issues
Nebraskans are eager to see the state fully fund public education (69% “favor”) and raise the minimum wage for service workers (66%). See Figure 3 below. A slim majority approve of plans to establish paid family and medical leave programs (53%) while two-thirds oppose public funding of charter schools (60% “oppose”). The proposal to allow the state to take away a citizen’s voter registration without permission is opposed (60%) by the same number who oppose placing state mandates on local government spending (60%).
As noted in Figure 4 below, Nebraskans overwhelmingly oppose a total ban on abortion (67% “net oppose”).Intensity of feeling is high, with 58% “strongly opposed.” While partisan divides do emerge, the majority believe abortion should be at least “legal in most cases” (55%) with only 12% indicating they believe abortion ought to be “illegal in all cases.”
Conclusion
“These results should serve as a guide for Senators returning to the Capitol in January. Senators should set a legislative agenda that focuses on the needs of working families such as education, instead of partisan issues,” said Holland Children’s Institute Executive Director Hadley Richters. “Senators looking to support children and families in Nebraska should reach out to the Holland Children’s Institute to learn more about what policies Nebraskans believe will benefit families. In order to change and implement policies that impact Nebraskans, our goal is to work with legislators so they understand the perspectives of the people they serve through our research and polling data.”
Methodology
The survey was conducted October 11-13, 2022, among n=600 registered voter, age 18 or older, in Nebraska via a multi-modal format. Approximately 400 interviews (n=422 weighted) were completed via live calls to landlines and cell phones using professional interviewers and an additional n=200 interviews (n=178 weighted) were completed via a text to web platform. The sample was randomly selected from TargetSmart’s enhanced voter file. 67% of respondents were reached on telephones (70% weighted). 74% of respondents who took the survey via phone were reached on a wireless phone (76% weighted). 33% of respondents were reached via SMS and took the survey online (30% weighted).
Quotas were assigned to reflect the demographic distribution of registered voters in Nebraska. The data were weighted by gender, age, party registration, TargetSmart Partisan Scores, 2020 Presidential Vote, TargetSmart Mid-Term General Election Scores, educational attainment, and county of residence. Percentage totals may not add up precisely due to rounding. The credibility interval (the theoretical margin of error for a blended methodology poll that relies partially on telephone-based probability sampling and partially on non-probability based online panel sampling is +/-4.0%.