By TODD STACY, Alabama Daily News
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – A new poll shows most Alabama voters approve of the state’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and see the state as being on the right path forward.
In a survey of general election voters conducted by Cygnal for Alabama Daily News, 56.6% said they believe things in Alabama are “headed in the right direction” while 33.8% said the state was “on the wrong track.”
“Generally speaking, would you say things in Alabama are headed in the right direction or off on the wrong track?”
| Response | % |
|---|---|
| Definitely the right direction | 14.9% |
| Mostly the right direction | 41.7% |
| Total | 56.6% |
| Mostly the wrong track | 19.3% |
| Definitely the wrong track | 14.6% |
| Total | 33.8% |
| Unsure | 9.5% |
Assessing the state’s handling of the pandemic, a plurality of voters, 42.9%, said Alabama had struck the right balance in putting precautions in place, while 25.1% said the state had gone too far with restrictions and 27.3% said the state had not gone far enough.
“Which of the following statements comes closest to your opinion on how the Alabama state government has handled the Coronavirus?”
| Response | % |
|---|---|
| The state has struck a good balance in handling the pandemic, putting in place common sense medical precautions that we need to continue. | 42.9% |
| Alabama has gone too far with its restrictions, harming the economy and infringing on personal liberties. | 25.1% |
| Alabama hasn't gone far enough and we need further public safety measures to prevent another wave of cases. | 27.3% |
| Unsure | 4.7% |
| Mostly the wrong track | 19.3% |
Specifically asked about Gov. Kay Ivey’s handling of the pandemic, 63.3% of voters said they approved of Ivey’s performance while 34.4% said they disapproved.
“Do you approve or disapprove of Governor Kay Ivey’s handling of the pandemic?”
| Response | % |
|---|---|
| Strongly approve | 24.0% |
| Somewhat approve | 39.3% |
| Total approve | 63.3% |
| Somewhat disapprove | 19.9% |
| Strongly disapprove | 14.6% |
| Total disapprove | 34.4% |
| Unsure | 2.2% |
Going deeper into the crosstabs, there were some partisan differences in voters response to questions. For example, Republicans by and large believe the state is headed in the right direction, to the tune of 80%, while 60% of Democrats think Alabama is on the wrong track.
Republicans were also more likely to say that either the state has struck the right balance on the pandemic response (49.4%) or that the state has gone too far (37.0%), while few Republicans (9.5%) think the state hasn’t gone far enough. The numbers are almost reverse for Democrats, 54% of which say the state hasn’t gone far enough and only 7.7% say the state has gone too far. A full 33.4% of Democrats say the state has struck the right balance.
Ivey maintains her strongest position among Republicans with 64.4% overall saying they approve of there handling of the pandemic. Republicans were more likely to say they strongly approve of Ivey’s performance (32.5%), while only 13.5% of Democrats said they strongly approved. Interestingly, Ivey’s approval is 60% or above across all ideological lines, with 63.8% of Independents approving and 59.9% of Democrats saying the same.
The survey was conducted Nov. 16-17 among 600 likely general election voters and has a margin of error of +/- 4.0%. Known registered voters were interviewed via live phone calls, interactive voice response and text message invitation in Cygnal’s multi-mode survey method. The survey was weighted to reflect a likely general election voter universe.
Additional results of the survey will be reported in the coming days exclusively available to ADN Insiders.