Research 2000 for Daily Kos. 8/31-9/3. All adults. MoE 2% (No trend lines)
Do you favor or oppose creating a government-administered health insurance option that anyone can purchase to compete with private insurance plans?
Favor Oppose Not Sure
All 58 34 8
Dem 81 12 7
Rep 26 69 5
Ind 57 33 10
Northeast 69 22 9
South 47 46 7
Midwest 61 31 8
West 59 33 8
The public option remains popular, by a nearly 3-2 margin. Seems like people like the idea of competition in the insurance market, that would help lower premiums and keep currently unaccountable insurance companies honest.
What's more, the public option is favored by over a quarter of self-identified Republicans, which is more "bipartisanship" than you'll ever see in DC. And if you look at the regional crosstabs, support for the public option would be even higher if it wasn't for the South, were birtherism and Obama derangement syndrome is at its highest.
If a candidate for office opposed a public health insurance option would that make you more or less likely to vote for that candidate or would it have no real effect on your vote?
More Less No Effect
All 23 36 41
Dem 8 58 34
Rep 58 12 30
Ind 17 32 51
Northeast 12 46 42
South 36 25 39
Midwest 19 40 41
West 21 37 42
Opposing the public option is electoral poison in every region of the country except the South, while both Democrats and Independents are willing to punish opponents of the public option at the ballot box.
Democrats have a national electoral mandate, they have public opinion on their side, they have dominant majorities in both chambers of Congress, and they have the White House.
No wonder Independents and Democrats are abandoning the Democratic Party:
Change in Favorability: Democratic Party (From 6/4 to 9/3)
OVERALL: - 10 (From 49 to 39)
DEMOCRATS: - 17 (From 84 to 67)
INDEPENDENTS: - 12 (From 48 to 36)
REPUBLICANS: No Change (From 4 to 4)
Change in Favorability: Republican Party (From 6/4 to 9/3)
OVERALL: +3 (from 20 to 23)
REPUBLICANS: +12 (from 61 to 73)
INDEPENDENTS: No Change (From 11 to 11)
DEMOCRATS: +2 (From 4 to 6)
Democrats and Independents voted Democratic to get stuff done. Democrats are showing that no matter how big their margins, no matter how popular the policy, they are still too incompetent to get anything done.
