North Carolinians are optimistic about their job and financial security despite the sluggish state of the national economy, while a majority of citizens still favor the use of the death penalty.
Those are among the findings of a new Elon Poll, conducted March 5-8 by the Elon Institute for Politics and Public Affairs. The poll sampled the opinions of 685 adults in the state and has a margin of error of ± 4 percent.
While tumbling stock prices and other indicators show a lack of confidence in the nation’s economy, 85 percent of North Carolinians polled feel secure or very secure about their current job situation. Fifty-seven percent of employed workers believe their financial situation will be better by the end of the year. Other economic figures:
- citizen opinion is divided on the prognosis of the state’s economy in the coming year. 29 percent are optimistic and believe that economic conditions in the state will improve, while 32 percent believe North Carolina’s economy will worsen. 34 percent believe conditions will stay relatively the same. These figures are virtually unchanged from a February Elon poll
- 41 percent of those polled believe their financial situation will improve this year, up slightly from 39 percent in February. 45 percent believe their financial situation will remain unchanged
The poll also found that 59 percent of citizens favor the continued use of the death penalty, but of those, nearly half (49 percent) would support a ban against executing the mentally retarded.
On other state issues:
- 60 percent of North Carolinians favor a state lottery, down slightly from 64 percent in February
- 51 percent are worried about school violence in North Carolina, although only 12 percent of those polled indicated they had heard of any school violence in their community
- 44 percent believe the state should be doing more to insure that North Carolina schools are less segregated by race
The poll also indicated that new governor Mike Easley may be having difficulty getting his agenda out to citizens. Only 28 percent of those polled listened to or read about his State of the State address.
“North Carolinians are not overly confident about the economy,” says Sharon Spray, assistant professor of political science and director of the Elon Poll. “But North Carolina’s numbers remain about the same, which is a bit surprising since national polls reflect a decline in the public’s confidence about the economy.”
This poll is the fifth conducted by the Elon Institute for Politics and Public Affairs since it was established in September. The non-partisan Elon Poll conducts frequent state-wide scientific telephone polls on issues of importance to North Carolinians. The poll results are shared with media, citizens and researchers to facilitate representative democracy and public policy making through the better understanding of the opinions and needs of North Carolina citizens.
The Elon Poll is conducted by students who work under the direction of faculty members in the political science department. A computerized polling center located on campus is equipped with sophisticated statistical software and 27 telephone polling stations.
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