Thursday, January 31, 2008

Colorado - Ritter up, Bush down

Colorado voters give President Bush a failing grade while
Governor Bill Ritter's approval ratings soar.
Denver, CO –A recent survey conducted by Talmey-Drake Research & Strategy indicates Coloradans -- including many Republicans -- disapprove of the job President Bush doing. Only 33% approve the president's job performance while an overwhelming 68% approve of Governor Ritter's job performance.
"Colorado Republican leaders would have you believe that Governor Ritter and the Democratic agenda he is pursuing is somehow unpopular with voters," said Pat Waak, Chair for the Colorado Democratic Party. "This polling indicates how out of touch the Republican leadership is and how detached they are from voters even in their own party."
The Talmey-Drake survey was conducted from January 22 to January 28, 2008. Details of the survey questions are attached.
The survey also concludes that the majority of Coloradans believe the state is going in the right direction. While the majority of voters believe the country is headed in the wrong direction.
"Tonight in Cherry Hills, Bob Schaffer is going to be raising money but avoiding doing anything public with one of the most unpopular Republican presidents in our history," said. Waak. "I wouldn't doubt that Bob Schaffer sneaks into the trunk of one of the limousines in the motorcade to avoid being seen with Bush."
"It is ironic that George Bush, a sitting U.S. President will drop into Colorado a day after former President Bill Clinton and Senator Barrack Obama spoke to record crowds of Colorado voters and avoid a public schedule. I am not surprised, because Mr. Bush's record of failure is nothing to brag about."
Talmey-Drake Research & Strategy

COLORADO STATEWIDE OMNIBUS SURVEY

Hello, my name is _____________. First, I want to assure you that we're not selling anything, or asking for money. I'm with Talmey-Drake Research, a public opinion and market research company in Boulder, Colorado. We're interviewing voters in Colorado with a very interesting survey about important issues facing the State of Colorado, and we would like to include your opinions.

SCREENER

A. First, I would like to confirm that you are over 18 years old and registered to vote in Colorado. [n=500]

Yes ......................................................................................................................... 100% Þ Go to Screener C
No.................................................................................................................................. -- Þ Go to Screener B
DK/NS......................................................................................................................... -- Þ Go to Screener B

B. [Ask only if R says "No" or "DK/NS" in A; else go to C] Is there someone in this household, who is 18 years old, or older, and registered to vote in Colorado, with whom I may speak?

Yes.......................................................................................................... 100% Þ Continue
No.................................................................................................................. -- Þ Terminate
DK/NS......................................................................................................... -- Þ Terminate

C. Thinking back to the 2006 election for Governor in Colorado between Bill Ritter and Bob Beauprez, did you vote in that election, or did you not vote?

Did vote......................................................................................................................... -- Þ Go to Screener D
Did not vote.................................................................................................................. -- Þ Go to Screener E
DK/NS......................................................................................................................... -- Þ Terminate

D. [Ask if R says "Did vote" in Screener C; else go to Screener E] And on a scale of ZERO to TEN, where a ZERO means you will absolutely not vote, and a TEN means you will absolutely vote, how likely are you to vote in the next presidential election to be held this November. You can use any number between ZERO and TEN.

0-7.................................................................................................................. -- Þ Terminate
8, 9 or 10........................................................................................................ -- Þ Go to Screener F
DK/NS......................................................................................................... -- Þ Go to Terminate

E. [Ask if R says "Did not vote" in Screener C; else go to Screener F] Did you not vote because you were too young to vote in 2006, or was it for some other reason?

Too young..................................................................................................... -- Þ Go to Screener F
Other reason.................................................................................................. -- Þ Terminate
DK/NS......................................................................................................... -- Þ Terminate

*An asterisk, wherever it appears, means that the result for that response rounds to less than 1%.

SCREENER

F. Are you currently registered as a Republican, a Democrat, some other party or are you unaffiliated? [Do not read list] [n=500]

Republican................................................................................................................ 35%
Democrat.................................................................................................................. 30%
Unaffiliated............................................................................................................... 33%
Green............................................................................................................................ -- Ü No Prompt
Libertarian..................................................................................................................... * Ü No Prompt
Some other party........................................................................................................ 1%
DK/NS...................................................................................................................... 1%

G............ [County Quotas: Adams 8%; Arapahoe 11%; Boulder 6%; Broomfield 1%; Denver 13%; Douglas 4%; El Paso 12%; Jefferson 12%; Larimer 6%; Mesa 3%; Pueblo 3%; Weld 4%, All others 17%] [From Sample]? [n=500]

Adams....................... 8% Denver................ 12% Kit Carson.............. * Phillips................... --

Alamosa....................... * Dolores.................... -- Lake..................... 1% Pitkin...................... --
Arapahoe................ 11% Douglas................ 5% La Plata................... * Prowers.................. *
Archuleta..................... * Eagle...................... 1% Larimer................ 6% Pueblo................. 3%
Baca.............................. -- Elbert..................... 1% Las Animas........... -- Rio Blanco ............ *
Bent.............................. * El Paso................ 12% Lincoln................... * Rio Grande.......... 1%
Boulder..................... 6% Fremont................. 1% Logan.................. 1% Routt...................... --
Broomfield................ 1% Garfield.................. 1% Mesa................... 3% Saguache............... *
Chaffee...................... 1% Gilpin........................ * Mineral................... -- San Juan................ --
Cheyenne.................... -- Grand........................ * Moffat.................... * San Miguel............ --
Clear Creek................... * Gunnison................. -- Montezuma............ * Sedgwick............... --
Conejos........................ -- Hinsdale................... -- Montrose............ 1% Summit.................... *
Costilla......................... -- Huerfano.................. * Morgan............... 1% Teller....................... *
Crowley........................ * Jackson.................... -- Otero....................... * Washington.......... --
Custer........................... * Jefferson............. 13% Ouray..................... -- Weld.................... 3%
Delta.......................... 1% Kiowa....................... -- Park......................... * Yuma....................... *

H. Sex [Do not ask] [n=500]

Male........................................................................................................................... 49%
Female....................................................................................................................... 51%

1. First, would you say things in the State of Colorado are generally going in the right direction, or have they gotten off on the wrong track in the past few years? [n=500]

Right direction..................................................................................................... 53%
Wrong track......................................................................................................... 37%
No opinion............................................................................................................. 8%
DK/NS................................................................................................................... 2%

2. Regardless of how you feel things are going in the state, do you approve or disapprove of the overall job Bill Ritter is doing as Governor of Colorado? [n=500]

Approve................................................................................................................ 68%
Disapprove........................................................................................................... 21%
No opinion/DK/NS....................................................................................... 11%

2a. And what about George W. Bush, do you approve or disapprove of the job he is doing as president? [n=500]

Approve................................................................................................................ 33%
Disapprove........................................................................................................... 63%
No opinion/DK/NS.......................................................................................... 4%

Our last questions are about you and your family. The answers to these questions help us statistically classify the results we obtain. Your responses to these questions, as well as all others in this survey, will be kept strictly confidential, and only used when combined with the hundreds of other interviews conducted

D1. Approximately how long have you lived in Colorado? [n=500]

3 years or less......................................................................................................... 3%
4-10 years.............................................................................................................. 14%
11-20 years............................................................................................................ 18%
21-30 years............................................................................................................ 23%
31 or more years................................................................................................. 42%
DK/NS...................................................................................................................... --

D2. What was the last grade in school you had the opportunity to complete? [Do not read list] [n=500]

Less than HS degree............................................................................................. 1%
HS graduate or equivalent, vocational.......................................................... 18%
Some college........................................................................................................ 22%
College grad......................................................................................................... 33%
Post grad. study..................................................................................................... 8%
Post Graduate degree........................................................................................ 18%
Refused....................................................................................................................... --
DK/NS....................................................................................................................... *

D3. May I ask how old you are? [n=500]

18-24......................................................................................................................... 5%
25-34...................................................................................................................... 14%
35-44...................................................................................................................... 20%
45-54...................................................................................................................... 25%
55-64...................................................................................................................... 21%
65 or older............................................................................................................ 14%
Refused.................................................................................................................... 1%

D4. And, which of the following income groups includes your family's total annual income from all sources in 2007? [Read list except refused and DK/NS] [n=500]

Up to $20,000........................................................................................................ 5%
$20,000, but less than $30,000........................................................................... 6%
$30,000, but less than $40,000........................................................................... 8%
$40,000, but less than $50,000........................................................................... 9%
$50,000, but less than $60,000........................................................................ 10%
$60,000, but less than $75,000........................................................................ 10%
$75,000 but less than $100,000...................................................................... 16%
$100,000 but less than $150,000..................................................................... 17%
$150,000 or more................................................................................................ 9%
Refused.................................................................................................................... 8% ÜDo not read
DK/NS................................................................................................................... 2% ÜDo not read

D5. Finally -- so that we can make sure all groups are represented -- would you please tell me what racial or ethnic group you consider yourself to be a member of? [Do not read list] [n=500]

White/Anglo........................................................................................................ 84%
Hispanic................................................................................................................... 5%
Black/African American..................................................................................... 2%
Asian/Oriental....................................................................................................... 1%
American Indian.................................................................................................... 1%
Multi-Ethnic/Mixed race.................................................................................... 2%
Other........................................................................................................................ 2%
Refused.................................................................................................................... 3%
DK/NS...................................................................................................................... --

Thank you for taking our survey, your answers have been extremely helpful.

Methodology

The January 2008 Colorado OmniPoll was conducted by Talmey-Drake Research & Strategy, Inc., a public opinion and market research firm in Boulder, Colorado. The results of this survey are based on 500 random telephone interviews active voters throughout Colorado. A list of all active voters was obtained, then randomly sampled. Interviews were conducted from January 22 to January 28, 2008. County quotas were established to ensure a representative distribution of interviews throughout Colorado, and quotas were also established to get approximately equal numbers of men and women. A random sample of 500 has a worst-case 95% confidence interval of plus or minus 4.4% about any one reported percentage.