This Washington
Poll: State Voter Outlook Improves
According to a new Elway poll, voter outlook in Washington State---measured by voters' expectations for the nation, the state, their community, and their household in the coming year---has improved dramatically over the past several months, increasing 1.14 points to 0.75 (on a scale of -8 to +8) over August, when voter outlook was the lowest in the poll's 20-year history.
Overall, the two most optimistic groups were Democrats and those making more than $75,000 a year. The two groups that were the least optimistic were middle-income people (those making between $50,000 and $75,000) and Republicans, with Republicans the only group reporting sub-zero levels of optimism about the future.
Traditionally, this would be seen as good news for Democratic candidates like Jay Inslee, who's running for governor. If people feel better about the economy and where things are going, the logic goes, they'll be less inclined to want a big change -- throwing over a Democrat for a Republican governor.
However, one flaw in that theory is that our current Democratic governor, Chris Gregoire, is the most unpopular Democratic governor (and the second-most-unpopular governor overall) in the nation; in an average of several polls taken last year, Gregoire's disapproval rating was 55 percent, with just 38 percent approval.
In percentage terms, 42 percent of all respondents said they expected things to get better for the nation in the next year, and 43 percent said they expected things to get better for the state. Closer to home, however, they were less optimistic, with 31 percent saying they expected things to improve in their community and just 25 percent saying they expected their household situation to get better.
Full poll results available here.
Overall, the two most optimistic groups were Democrats and those making more than $75,000 a year. The two groups that were the least optimistic were middle-income people (those making between $50,000 and $75,000) and Republicans, with Republicans the only group reporting sub-zero levels of optimism about the future.
Traditionally, this would be seen as good news for Democratic candidates like Jay Inslee, who's running for governor. If people feel better about the economy and where things are going, the logic goes, they'll be less inclined to want a big change -- throwing over a Democrat for a Republican governor.
However, one flaw in that theory is that our current Democratic governor, Chris Gregoire, is the most unpopular Democratic governor (and the second-most-unpopular governor overall) in the nation; in an average of several polls taken last year, Gregoire's disapproval rating was 55 percent, with just 38 percent approval.
In percentage terms, 42 percent of all respondents said they expected things to get better for the nation in the next year, and 43 percent said they expected things to get better for the state. Closer to home, however, they were less optimistic, with 31 percent saying they expected things to improve in their community and just 25 percent saying they expected their household situation to get better.
Full poll results available here.
