CSPG: Upper Midwest Public Opinion Archive

University of Minnesota
Home \| Initiatives \| Events \| Elections \| Reports \| Public Opinion \| Blog Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs

Minnesota: Voting

Interest in Elections
Integrity of Election System
Methods to Improve Election System
Negative Advertising

Interest in Elections

Motivation for Presidential Vote Choice

Poll	Date	Voting with enthusiasm for candidate	Voting against other candidate	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	September 18, 2008	71%	23%	7%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "When you vote for President this year, will you be voting with enthusiasm for your candidate or voting primarily against the other candidate?"

Interest in Elections (Statewide)

Interest	June 21 – July 12, 2004	October 21-26, 2004	October 23-28, 2006
A great deal / very	58%	85%	68%
A fair amount / somewhat	31%	13%	29%
Only a little / not very	10%	2%	3%
No interest at all / not at all	1%	0%	0%
No opinion	0%	0%	0%
Poll	Humphrey Institute¹	Humphrey Institute¹	Humphrey Institute²
Sample	589 RV	690 LV	663 LV
MoE	± 4.0	± 4.0	± 3.8

1 "Generally speaking, how much interest would you say you have in the upcoming November Presidential election? A great deal, a fair amount, only a little, or no interest at all?"

2 "How interested in the upcoming election are you: very, somewhat, not very, or not at all interested?"

Interest in Elections (Minneapolis)

Poll	Date	Very	Somewhat	Not very	Not at all	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Humphrey Institute¹	October 17-29, 2005	52%	43%	4%	1%	0%	371 LV	± 5.1

1 "How interested in the upcoming mayoral election are you: very, somewhat, not very, or not at all interested?" Poll of Minneapolis residents.

Interest in Elections (St. Paul)

Poll	Date	Very	Somewhat	Not very	Not at all	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Humphrey Institute¹	October 17-29, 2005	58%	38%	2%	2%	0%	371 LV	± 5.1

1 "How interested in the upcoming mayoral election are you: very, somewhat, not very, or not at all interested?" Poll of St. Paul residents.

Integrity of Election System

Confidence in Vote Counting

Poll	Date	Very	Somewhat	Not very	Not at all	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen²	October 22, 2008	66%	26%	6%	2%	1%	500 LV	± 4.5
Rasmussen¹	August 1, 2006	40%	36%	16%	5%	2%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "How confident are you that ballots are properly counted in most elections and the right person is declared the winner?"

2 "How confident are you that your vote will be counted on November 4th?"

Large Number of Disenfranchised Voters

Poll	Date	Yes	No	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	August 1, 2006	23%	51%	26%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "In most elections, are large numbers of people prevented from voting who should be allowed to vote?"

Large Number of Ineligible Voters

Poll	Date	Yes	No	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	August 1, 2006	26%	38%	36%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "In most elections, are large numbers of people allowed to vote who are not eligible to vote?"

Fairness of Elections

Poll	Date	Yes	No	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	October 23, 2008	54%	28%	18%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "Generally speaking, are elections fair to voters?"

Methods to Improve Election System

Photo ID Required to Vote

Poll	Date	Yes	No	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen1	October 22, 2008	73%	20%	7%	500 LV	± 4.5
Rasmussen¹	August 1, 2006	83%	13%	4%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "Should voters be required to show photo identification such as a drivers license before being allowed to vote?"

Language to Print Election Ballots

Poll	Date	English only	English and Spanish	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	August 1, 2006	58%	39%	4%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "Should election ballots be printed in English only or should they be printed in English and Spanish?"

Negative Advertising

Accurate Description of Another Candidate's Position a Negative Ad

Poll	Date	Yes	No	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	August 13, 2008	17%	64%	19%	700 LV	± 4.0
Rasmussen¹	April 22, 2008	14%	64%	22%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "Is it a negative ad when one candidate accurately describes the position of another candidate?"

Impact of Negative Campaign Ad On Vote for Candidate Who Produced the Ad

Poll	Date	More likely	Less likely	No impact	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	August 13, 2008	8%	58%	32%	2%	700 LV	± 4.0
Rasmussen¹	April 22, 2008	7%	61%	30%	2%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "Do negative campaign advertisements make you more or less likely to vote for the candidate who produced the ad?"