A new poll shows Ohio voters overwhelmingly support federal aid for states, localities and school districts experiencing fiscal crises due to the coronavirus pandemic.
According to the poll conducted for AFSCME, 67% of Ohioans from across the political spectrum want Congress to provide at least $1 trillion in aid to states, cities, towns and schools to prevent cuts to public services such as health care, education and emergency response. A majority of Ohio’s Democrats (85%), independents (63%) and Republicans (52%) favor federal aid.
The survey, from Public Policy Polling (PPP), also shows voters strongly disapprove of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's view that Congress should allow states to go bankrupt rather than provide assistance. A majority of those surveyed (62%) said providing federal aid is the better way to deal with the budget shortfalls resulting from the pandemic.
A plurality (45%) of Ohioans say they are more likely to vote for a candidate who supports $1 trillion in federal aid, while just 23% say they would be less likely.
Voters in Alaska, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Maine, Montana, North Carolina¸ McConnell’s home state of Kentucky and Arizona have also displayed strong, bipartisan preferences for federal aid to states and localities.
PPP surveyed 995 Ohio voters from Aug. 25-26. The margin of error is +/- 3.1%. Half of the respondents were interviewed over the telephone and half by text message.
AFSCME has long pushed for at least $1 trillion in federal aid to keep public service workers on the job and ensure communities have the resources to grapple with health and economic emergencies created by the pandemic.
The House-passed Heroes Act contains about $1 trillion in federal aid. Though that bill was passed in mid-May, the Senate has ignored it. In late July, the Senate unveiled its own coronavirus relief proposal, but it’s woefully inadequate and includes no aid for states, cities, towns and schools.
As negotiations continue on Capitol Hill, AFSCME members continue to push Congress for state and local aid as part of our union’s “Fund the Front Lines” campaign.