Polling Project measures Midwest voter sentiment

LINCOLN – A new survey from Nebraska Public Media, The Midwest Newsroom and Emerson College Polling Center asked more than 1,000 registered voters in Nebraska, as well as Iowa and Kansas and Missouri, about measures on Nov. 5 ballots, as well as a variety of social and economic subjects.

Nebraska Public Media is a member of The Midwest Newsroom, a partnership between public radio member stations in the four states and NPR.

Located in Boston, The Emerson College Polling Center is a nonpartisan organization that administers opinion surveys to better understand the attitudes and beliefs of the public with a transparent and representative approach.

“Independent polling is a critical tool in our ability to connect with Nebraska voters and tell impactful stories,” said Jay Omar, Nebraska Public Media News Director. “Our data journalist Daniel Wheaton is helping to illustrate the most important information we have gathered from this poll.” More information about Nebraska Public Media News and stories from the network’s team of local reporters are available at NebraskaPublicMedia. org/news.

The separate surveys of each state were conducted between Sept. 26 and Oct. 2, 2024. Some of the key findings include: More than 60 percent of respondents in all four states said a college degree is not worth the cost.

About 10 percent of respondents in each state said climate change is caused “entirely by human activities” while about 24 percent said it’s caused “mostly by human activities.”

When asked where they find news about state and local politics they trust, about 35 percent of respondents across all four states responded, “local media,” while about 25 percent said, “social media sites.”

On the issue of abortion, the poll asked two questions specific to Nebraska. According to the Emerson College Polling Center, the results of the poll show both Nebraska proposals will likely pass. Whichever measure receives the most votes will be adopted into the Nebraska Constitution.

When asked about the first abortion measure on the ballot, “On the Nebraska ballot measure to provide for a state constitutional right to abortion before fetal viability, would you vote yes, in favor of the constitutional right to abortion, or no, in opposition?” 44.2 percent of respondents indicated they would vote “yes,” while 40.3 percent of respondents indicated they would vote “no.” Of those polled, 15.5 percent of voters indicated they were “unsure.”

When asked about the second abortion measure on the ballot, “On the Nebraska ballot measure to prohibit abortion after the first trimester, except in the case of medical emergencies or if the pregnancy is the result of sexual assault or incest, would you vote yes, to ban abortion after the first trimester, or no, in opposition?” 46.1 percent of respondents indicated they would vote “yes,” while 40.5 percent of respondents indicated they would vote “no.” Of those polled, 13.3 percent of voters indicated they were “unsure.”

Other questions on the surveys covered gender-affirming care, school and library book bans and whether the country is on the right track.

“Collaborating with The Midwest Newsroom gives us a rare opportunity to blend the insights from pre-election polling with the on-the-ground insights of local journalists, providing a unique and invaluable perspective ahead of the 2024 election. By going beyond the ballot test questions, this partnership elevates the critical issues that matter most to communities in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska,” said Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling.

Holly Edgell, managing editor of The Midwest Newsroom, said the project aimed to gauge voter sentiment across a range of issues, themes and topics that recur in popular discourse.

“These are the questions of our time,” she said. “We were less interested in asking how people are planning to vote in November than asking how people are thinking about issues close to home as they grapple with them in daily life.”

Edgell said the project will help reporters in their coverage of issues that elicit strong opinions but can also be more nuanced than conventional wisdom suggests.