Florida poll shows voters disagree with DeSantis on COVID-19 policies
South Florida Sun Sentinel
A public opinion poll released Thursday shows more evidence that a majority of Floridians oppose one of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ signature COVID-19 policies: his attempt to block school districts from mandating masks.
The poll showed that already-strong support for requiring masks in schools is increasing.
An overwhelming majority of likely Florida voters surveyed during the last five days in August by Data For Progress — 73% — said school districts should be allowed to require masks. Just 25% disagreed.
That’s higher support than the 60% support and 36% opposition revealed in a Quinnipiac University Poll that asked almost the same question 10 days earlier.
DeSantis hasn’t budged from his opposition, even as school boards responsible for educating half the state’s children flouted his ban and imposed mask mandates. He says parents are the ones to decide what’s right for their children.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends wearing masks in schools to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, but DeSantis issued an executive order July 30 to stop school districts from imposing mask mandates.
DeSantis approval
With the coronavirus pandemic the overriding issue of the day, Floridians are divided over DeSantis’ performance: 45% approved, 52% disapproved.
The numbers reflect an enormous political divide.
Among Democrats, 83% disapproved of DeSantis’ performance while 75% of Republicans approved. There is also great intensity in peoples’ views, with 72% of Democrats strongly disapproving and 54% of Republicans strongly approving of the governor’s performance.
Among independents, the numbers weren’t nearly so lopsided: 38% approving and 56% disapproving.
The results are in line with the Quinnipiac Poll. It found 51% of Florida voters disapproved and 46% approved of DeSantis’ handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Delta concern
The Data For Progress poll, taken before the daily numbers of new coronavirus cases began to fall, found that almost all Florida voters — 92% — were concerned about the delta variant.
Though concern cut across political parties, the level of concern varied greatly:
Very concerned: All voters, 60%; Democrats, 77%, Independents, 58%; Republicans, 44%.
A little concerned: All voters, 32%; Democrats, 19%; Independents, 32%; Republicans, 43%.
A Florida Atlantic University Poll conducted from Aug. 12 to 16 found similar levels of concern with a virtually identical question. FAU reported that 81% of Floridians were concerned about the delta variant.
That included 64% who were “very concerned” and 17% who were a “little concerned.”
Mask mandates
Most people in the latest poll favored indoor mask mandates in at least some situations.
50% supported a government-required indoor mask mandate in all public places. Just 32% of Republicans supported a government mask mandate. Democrats’ support was more than double at 70%.
14% said the government should require masks only in places where there is a COVID-19 outbreak.
26% said masks should be encouraged but not required by the government.
10% said indoor mask usage “should not be encouraged by the government.”
Political implications
The poll found overwhelming support among Republicans, but some pockets of disagreement on specific COVID policies, including the 32% who support a government mandate for indoor mask wearing in all public places, a concept DeSantis fiercely opposes, and the 51% who said school districts should be allowed to require masks.
Politically, the most important thing to DeSantis — who is running for re-election in 2022 and widely expected to seek the Republican presidential nomination in 2024 — is nurturing his political base in the party.
The key to winning elections in the current environment is generating excitement among a candidate’s base voters and encouraging them to turn out to vote.
The survey was commissioned by left-leaning Committee to Protect Health Care. The poll was conducted by Data for Progress, which is also left-leaning. Despite its partisan lean, pollster ratings from FiveThirtyEight.com give Data for Progress a B rating based on the historical accuracy and methodology of its polls.
Data for Progress used a web panel to survey 753 likely Florida voters from Aug. 27 to 31.
