Majority Believe Beehive State on Right Track
PHOENIX (March 3, 2022)- In the first Utah Public Opinion Pulse (UTPOP) survey of 2022, OH Predictive Insights (OHPI) asked Utah voters a battery of questions to check the temperature of Utah’s current political climate. According to the February survey, 58% of Utah voters believe the Beehive State is on the right track – a 4-point decrease from the November UTPOP – while 42% say it’s headed in the wrong direction – a 4-point increase from November.
This UTPOP was the first of four quarterly surveys, conducted February 7th – February 14th, 2022. This UTPOP surveyed 739 Utah registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 3.6%.
With no movement on the state generic ballot from November to February, a majority of Utah voters continue to believe that Republicans (51%) would do a better job running the state compared to Democrats (20%) while nearly one-third say neither party should steer the ship.
“The state generic ballot – unchanged from November to February – is roughly reflective of Utah’s electoral makeup right now (seen in the sample summary on our poll report),” said Mike Noble, OHPI Chief of Research.
Top Issues
February’s UTPOP found that jobs and the economy remains the top issue in Utah at 30% (a 3-point increase from November to February). However, education is becoming increasingly important to Utah voters, rising 6 points from November to 22%, surpassing healthcare as the number two issue. Healthcare also dropped a few points in February, and Immigration continues to be a low priority for Utah voters.
“Economic and education issues are trending upwards, meanwhile, healthcare is starting to take a back seat among Utah’s electorate,” said Mike Noble.
Biden
Biden’s job approval continues to sink with Utah voters. His approval continues to drop since the last November survey, with now nearly 7 in 10 Utah voters (67%) disapproving of the job Biden has been doing (+4 points since November). As for the approval of Biden’s job in office, only about 3 in 10 Utah voters approve (29%) which is down 4 points since November.
Looking closer into Utah voters’ approval of Biden’s handling of various issues, the survey found that the issues voters care about shape their perceptions of President Biden. Voters concerned about immigration and jobs and the economy disapprove of Biden – more than half of whom strongly disapprove – while voters who were more focused on healthcare have softer disapproval of the President.
“Similar to what we’re seeing in other Southwest states like Arizona and Nevada, the correlation between top issues and Biden’s job approval is becoming closely aligned in Utah as well,” said Noble. “And, according to our January and February polls, jobs and the economy is the number one issue in all three states.”
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Methodology: This poll was conducted as an online opt-in panel survey. The survey was completed by OH Predictive Insights from February 7th – February 14th, 2022 from a Utah Statewide General Population sample. The sample demographics were weighted to accurately reflect gender, region, age, ethnicity, and education according to recent Census data available. The sample size was 739 completed surveys, with a MoE of ± 3.6%. Numbers may not equal 100% due to rounding.
Media Contact:
Veronica Sutliff, Noble Predictive Insights, v.sutliff@npredictive.com, (602) 390-5248
Mike Noble, Noble Predictive Insights, m.noble@npredictive.com, (480) 313-1837
About Noble Predictive Insights: As a nonpartisan public opinion polling, market research, and data analytics firm, Noble Predictive Insights exists to elevate the world around us by empowering decision-makers with digestible data and actionable insights that translate to data-based solutions. We bridge the gap between research and strategy with customized strategic research, a hyper-focus on impact, and being true partners with our clients. Noble Predictive Insights (formerly O.H. Predictive Insights) is a 2023 Inc. 5000 fastest-growing company in the Southwest region, and is ranked in the top 15 most accurate pollsters as well as in the top 5 for lowest average bias in the 2021-22 election cycle by FiveThirtyEight. For more information, please call (602) 326-5694 or visit our website at www.noblepredictiveinsights.com.