Poll: Only 39% Say PA Headed in ‘Right Direction’

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Franklin & Marshall College Poll

The 24th year of consecutive polling in Pennsylvania

Below are the highlights of the March 2015, Franklin & Marshall College Poll of Pennsylvania voters. Complete results can be found at http://www.fandm.edu/fandmpoll

• More voters (39%) believe the state is headed in the right direction than at any time since January 2010, while forty-seven percent feel it is off on the wrong track.

• Nearly two in five (38%) registered Pennsylvania voters believes Governor Wolf is doing an "excellent" or "good" job as governor — more than three in five (58%) Democrats rate his performance as "excellent" or "good."

• Senator Pat Toomey currently leads Democrat Joe Sestak by a five point margin, 34% to 29%, although most voters (37%) are still undecided about this race.

• Voters indicate their top priority for state government is an increase in funding for public education (27%) or local property tax reform (25%).

• A majority of state voters support the Governor’s budget plan (59%) – increasing the sales and personal income taxes and creating a Marcellus Shale extraction tax to reduce local property taxes and increase funding to public schools.

• State store privatization is supported by forty-nine percent of the state’s voters, while thirty-seven percent oppose, which is consistent with past surveys.

• Two in three (66%) of voters support increasing the state’s minimum wage to $10.10 per hour.

This survey reflects interviews with 597 Pennsylvania registered voters conducted by the Center for Opinion Research at Franklin & Marshall College from March 17-23, 2015 (sample error of +/- 4.2% percentage points).

The Franklin & Marshall College Poll is produced in conjunction with the Philadelphia Daily News, WGAL-TV (South Central PA), Pittsburgh Tribune Review, WTAE-TV (Pittsburgh), WPVI-TV6/ABC (Philadelphia), Times-Shamrock Newspapers, Harrisburg Patriot-News/Penn Live, Lancaster Newspapers and the Reading Eagle. It may be used in whole or in part, provided any use is attributed to Franklin & Marshall College.

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