Winthrop Poll Shows Haley Ahead, Plus Other Opinions by S.C. Voters

Quick Facts

The results come from telephone conversations with 741 likely voters in South Carolina between Oct. 5 and Oct. 10.

The survey used Random Digit Dialing (RDD), wireless phone number sampling and sample taken from lists of registered voters.

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Scott Huffmon

ROCK HILL, S.C. - Republican gubernatorial candidate Nikki Haley holds a 9 percentage-point lead over Democrat Vincent Sheheen three weeks ahead of Election Day, according to the Winthrop Poll.

The results come from telephone conversations with 741 likely voters in South Carolina between Oct. 5 and Oct. 10. Check out the questions and answers here.

The poll shows that 13 percent of likely voters remain undecided, and that one in four of Haley's supporters say they might change their mind before Election Day on Nov. 2, compared to about one in five of Sheheen's.

"More Haley voters are not confident in their vote," said Scott Huffmon, university poll director and an associate professor of political science. "Most people who say that in the end don't change their mind, but clearly a larger percentage of hers are not entirely comfortable with their vote."

Huffmon speculated that voters in this deeply red state are voting by political party. "They may be Republican, but something about Haley makes them uncomfortable," he said.

The poll was conducted among those 18 years and older. The survey used Random Digit Dialing (RDD), wireless phone number sampling and sample taken from lists of registered voters. Data utilizing all respondents has a margin of error of plus/minus 3.6 percent.

Among the Winthrop Poll findings:

• Among likely voters, almost 25 percent of Democrats remain undecided in the Senate race. While 30.6 percent say they support Democrat Alvin Greene, 16.1 percent say they support Republican Jim DeMint, and 22.4 percent support Tom Clements, the Green Party candidate – but almost one-in-four Democrats have not yet made up their minds.

• Almost 73 percent of those polled disapprove of the way the U.S. Congress is handling its job.

• Senator Jim DeMint, who is frequently touted as a leading figure in the Republican Party, was identified by only 4 percent of Republican likely voters in S.C. as the leading voice for the national Republican Party. Among Democrats, he received less than 2 percent of the responses and among Independents, 4.5 percent. By comparison, Sarah Palin was named by 11.4 percent of all respondents, 13.7 percent of Democrats, 10.1 percent of Republicans, and 11.3 percent of Independents. Not sure/Can’t think of anyone lead by a large margin among all respondents, Democrats, Republicans and Independents.

• Among likely voters, almost 50 percent said they generally agreed with the principles of the Tea Party movement.

• Fifty-five percent of those polled think there should be more women in the S.C. Assembly than there are today.

• Almost 60% identify jobs/unemployment/economy/economic-financial crisis as the most important problem facing South Carolina today, followed by education, which was cited almost 20% of the time by all respondents, 21.3 percent of Democrats, 17.1 percent Republicans and 22.9 percent of Independents.

• When asked about the economic conditions in the country as a whole, Democrats and Republicans were almost diametrically opposed in their responses. Democrats: Getting better – 62.6 percent/Getting worse – 25.6 percent. Republicans: Getting better – 27.1 percent/Getting worse – 62.8 percent.

• Despite the recent oil spill disaster in the Gulf Coast, almost 60 percent of likely voters polled approve of allowing off-shore drilling for oil off the coast of South Carolina.

• A whopping 70 percent of those polled do not feel that K-12 education in S.C. is currently being funded at adequate levels. Among Democrats, 84.4 percent feel that way, among Republicans, 62.5 percent do, and among Independents, 65.1 percent do.

Winthrop University, located in Rock Hill, S.C., is a nationally recognized public university offering graduate and undergraduate degrees to an inclusive, international student body.

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