HIGH POINT, N.C., Feb. 13, 2012 – The most recent HPU Poll, fielded by the High Point University Survey Research Center, finds that 44 percent of North Carolinians approve of President Barack Obama’s job performance – a stable finding compared to the last HPU Poll fielded in November. The poll also found that approval of Gov. Bev Perdue and Congress appear to be slightly lower with Perdue’s approval rating at 35 percent and the approval rating for Congress at a mere 11 percent.
Job approval questions:
Do you approve or disapprove of the way that Barack Obama is handling his job as president?
Approve – 44 percent
Disapprove – 47 percent
Don’t know/refuse – 9 percent
“Our first approval reading of the new year shows neither improvement nor deterioration of the president’s standing with North Carolina residents,” said HPU Poll director Martin Kifer. “We’ll be watching in the coming months to see whether this approval rating moves decisively in one direction or another.”
Do you approve or disapprove of the way that Bev Perdue is handling her job as governor?
Approve – 35 percent
Disapprove – 48 percent
Don’t know/refuse – 17 percent
Do you approve or disapprove of the way Congress is handling its job?
Approve – 11 percent
Disapprove – 78 percent
Don’t know/refuse – 12 percent
“Residents of North Carolina do not appear to be highly supportive of either the governor or the U.S. Congress at this point in time,” said assistant HPU Poll director Sadie Leder. “This dissatisfaction with Congress in particular mirrors what we see at the national level.”
The survey also found that North Carolinians continue to be pessimistic about the economy nationally and within their home state.
Economic condition questions:
Right now, do you think the economic conditions in this country as a whole are getting better or getting worse?
Getting better – 42 percent
Getting worse – 45 percent
Neither better nor worse – 12 percent
Don’t know/refuse – 2 percent
Right now, do you think the economic conditions in the state of North Carolina are getting better or getting worse?
Getting better – 36 percent
Getting worse – 50 percent
Neither better nor worse – 11 percent
Don’t know/refuse – 4 percent
The High Point University Survey Research Center fielded the survey from Jan. 30-Feb. 2 and Feb. 4-9, 2012. The responses came from 660 adults with landline and cellular telephones in North Carolina selected by a Random Digit Dial (RDD) method giving the survey a margin of sampling error of approximately 4 percentage points. For smaller subsamples the margin of sampling error is larger. In addition to sampling error, factors such as question wording and other methodological choices in conducting survey research can introduce additional error into the findings of opinion polls.
Further results and methodological details from the survey and can be found at the Survey Research Center website, http://src.highpoint.edu/, or from Dr. Martin Kifer, the center’s director, at [email protected] or 336-841-9333.
At High Point University, every student receives an extraordinary education in an inspiring environment with caring people.℠ HPU, located in the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina, is a liberal arts institution with over 4,200 undergraduate and graduate students at campuses in High Point and Winston-Salem. It is ranked by US News and World Report at No. 3 among Regional Colleges in the South. Parade Magazine lists HPU in the top 25 private schools in the nation. HPU was selected in the 2010-2011 list of “Colleges of Distinction,” as well as one of the top green schools in the country by the Sierra Club. The university offers 44 undergraduate majors, 40 undergraduate minors and 10 graduate degree programs. It is accredited by the Commission of Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and is a member of the NCAA, Division I and the Big South Conference. Visit High Point University on the Web at highpoint.edu.
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Pam Haynes
Communication Specialist
336-841-9055
[email protected]