Princeton Research Associates for National Journal. (PDF) 10/13-16. Adults. MoE 3.7
Q. As you may know, protestors around the country have been demonstrating against Wall Street financial institutions and asking for more government regulation of these institutions. How much have you seen or heard about these demonstrations – a lot, some, not too much, or nothing at all?
A lot: 35
Some: 30
Not too much: 18
Nothing at all: 17
Q. From what you know about these demonstrations against Wall Street, would you say you completely agree with the goals of the protestors, mostly agree, mostly DISagree, or completely disagree with their goals?
Completely agree: 12
Mostly agree: 47
Mostly disagree: 18
Completely disagree: 13
Don't Know/Refused: 10
Overall, this comes out to a high level of support for Occupy Wall Street, with 59 percent of Americans agreeing with the protests and 31 percent disagreeing. This is the latest in a long line of polls showing shown either a plurality or a majority of Americans viewing the movement favorably (see here, here and here). The poll also showed 68 percent of adults in favor of a five percent surtax on millionaires to pay for a new jobs bill.
These are great numbers for Occupy Wall Street, but they should be digested with an important qualifier. By a four-to-one margin, those who agree with Occupy Wall Street "mostly agree" rather than "completely agree." When polls are heavy with "somewhat" or "mostly" responses, that is often a sign that opinions are not well formed on that subject matter. As such, the challenge for Occupy Wall Street moving forward will be to solidify its broad, but soft, support.