Arizonans Mixed on
School Vouchers
Support Increases from Previous Survey
Maricopa residents are deeply
divided on the subject of school vouchers - this according to the most recently
completed O’Neil Associates Valley
Monitor.
A random sample of 400
registered voters selected throughout the county were asked the following
question: “Do you think that parents of Arizona school children should be
provided with vouchers which could be used to pay tuition at any public or
private school of their choice, only at a public school of their choice, or do
you think that vouchers are a bad idea?”
Variations Across Subgroups
According to the director of the poll, Dr. Michael O’Neil: “We found some variation in support for vouchers by demographic groups. Not surprisingly, given the partisan character of the debate on this subject, the highest level of support for vouchers was evident among self-identified conservatives (70%) and registered Republicans (66%). Independents resembled Republicans on this question (with 62% in support of some form of vouchers). In contrast, far fewer Democrats (40%) supported the idea of some kind of voucher; self-identified liberals (24%) were even less supportive. Self-identified moderates were almost identical to the overall sample (with 58% in support of some form of vouchers).
There was also considerably higher support for vouchers among younger segments within the population. The most dramatic break was at 65 years and older, a group for whom the level of support for vouchers dropped almost 20%.Time Trends
O'Neil continued, "These findings represent a modest increase in the level of support for vouchers. In 1996 the Valley Monitor Poll showed 49% support for vouchers, the current figure of 57% represents an 8% increase. Both of these figures include 10% who favor the use of vouchers for public schools only. There is evidence, however, that the support for vouchers has not been consistently up over time. Indeed, in a 1991 Valley Monitor Poll, 61% of the Maricopa County population indicated that they thought vouchers were a good idea. The current 57% support is actually down slightly from this figure."
“These findings also differ from our 1994 survey of the membership of the East Valley Partnership, a business and community group located in the East Valley. At that time, 72% of this group indicated that they supported the use of vouchers.”
O’Neil concluded, “What we see here is a public that is deeply divided on the subject of vouchers. On the one hand, over two-fifths of the population is opposed to the idea completely. On the other hand, over four-fifths of those who support the idea believe that vouchers should be useable at any public or private school. These findings are clearly the grist for continuing public debate on this subject, with a low likelihood of a resolution that will be satisfying to a substantial majority of citizens.”
About the Poll. The O’Neil Associates Valley Monitor is an independent, scientific, periodic random community survey of the metropolitan Phoenix area and the State of Arizona; as always, this Valley Monitor poll was not sponsored or paid for by any outside organization. Four hundred interviews were conducted with randomly selected Maricopa county voters between August 28 and September 3, 2001. The “sampling error” associated with this survey is approximately ±5.0%. In other words, the chances are approximately 95 in 100 that we would have obtained the same results—within a margin of ±5.0%—had we interviewed every Maricopa county voter. Other sources of possible survey error, such as question wording, should also be considered, but are inherently not quantifiable.
| O’Neil Associates, Inc. is a Tempe-based public opinion research firm specializing in client-focused attitude and awareness studies for a wide variety of industries and organizations. FOR RELEASE: Tuesday, October 30, 2001 (VMP2001-180-1614) |