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Findings from the June F&M PA Poll

Jun 20, 2018
Franklin & Marshall College

Below are the highlights of the June 2018, Franklin & Marshall College Poll. Complete results can be found at http://www.fandm.edu/fandmpoll

Half (55%) of the state’s registered voters are “very interested” in the 2018 mid-term elections; more Democrats (62%) than Republicans (50%) or independents (41%) say they are “very interested.”Democrat Tom Wolf leads Republican Scott Wagner 48% to 29% in the governor’s contest among registered voters with 23% indicating they are undecided.Democrat Bob Casey leads Republican Lou Barletta in the U.S. Senate contest 44% to 27% with 28% indicating they are undecided.A large portion of voters, notably Republicans and independents, are undecided in the Senate and Gubernatorial races and neither Republican candidate is well known yet among voters.Nearly half (45%) of the state’s registered voters believe the state is “headed in the right direction,” with 39%.More than two in five (45%) registered voters in Pennsylvania believe Governor Wolf is doing an “excellent” or “good” job as governor.Two in five (42%) registered voters believe Senator Casey is doing an “excellent” or “good” job as the state’s U.S. Senator, which is an increase from the March survey (37%).Three in four (72%) of the state’s registered voters believe state government needs reformed, with large majorities favoring reforms to campaign finance laws, the structure and operation of the state legislature, redistricting, and state and local government financing.About one in three (35%) registered voters in Pennsylvania believes President Trump is doing an “excellent” or “good” job as president, which is an increase from the March survey (30%).About one in three (33%) voters say they have had an increase in their income because of the tax cut passed in December, although most (63%) of these respondents report seeing only a small increase.

This survey reflects interviews with 472 Pennsylvania registered voters, including 224 Democrats, 185 Republicans and 63 Independents conducted by the Center for Opinion Research at Franklin & Marshall College from June 4-10, 2018. The sample error for this survey is +/- 6.5 percentage points.  A complete methodological statement can be found in the final report.

The Franklin & Marshall College Poll is produced in conjunction with the Philadelphia Daily News, WGAL-TV (South Central PA), Pittsburgh Tribune Review, WTAE-TV (Pittsburgh), WPVI-TV6/ABC (Philadelphia), Times-Shamrock Newspapers, Harrisburg Patriot-News/PennLive, LNP media group, and the Reading Eagle. It may be used in whole or in part, provided any use is attributed to the college. 

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