Wednesday, June 01, 2011

New poll confirms: Minnesotans agree with Mark Dayton

Every recent poll that asks Minnesotans which budget they prefer shows a clear majority support Governor Mark Dayton's approach. The most recent, by Public Policy Polling:
Q12: Would you support a tax increase on the wealthiest 2% of Minnesotans to help balance the state budget, or do you think the budget should be balanced through cuts only?
Would support a tax increase on the wealthiest 2% of Minnesotans 63%
Budget should be balanced through cuts only 32%
The same poll finds that 2010 Minnesota Republican voters are experiencing voter's remorse, and that Dayton would romp to a 12-point victory in a rematch of last November's election. Dayton has a 51% favorable rating, compared to 29% favorable opinion of Republican legislators. In a generic contest between DFL and Republican legislators, the DFL leads by 9 points, 49-40.

These results are not outliers. Although PPP is a Democratic polling firm, KSTP pollster SurveyUSA found similar sentiments. 62% supported some version of raising revenue to balance the budget (31% supported raising taxes on the wealthy, 4% supported raising taxes on all, and 27% supported a mix of cuts and taxes.)

Simply put, there's not a single poll that the GOP can point to that indicates Minnesotans support their budget. It's time for them to compromise on revenue with Governor Dayton.

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