Poll shock: Nearly
half might back McGreevey
49% would consider
voting for him again
BY DEBORAH HOWLETT,
Star-Ledger from the Web, May 4, 2005
Newark, NJ -- Five months
after Gov. James McGreevey left office in disgrace, a new public opinion poll
shows that 49 percent of New Jerseyans would consider voting for him in a future
election.
The poll by Zogby International was commissioned by the gay rights advocacy
group Garden State Equality to measure public support for gay marriage (which
remains at 55 percent statewide). The group piggy-backed the McGreevey
question onto the poll, largely in an effort to test electoral support for gay
and lesbian candidates.
"The results were shocking," said Steven Goldstein, chairman of Garden State
Equality.
The poll asked voters what their opinion would be if McGreevey ran for another
office, like Congress or the Legislature.
● 6 percent said they would never vote for McGreevey because he is gay.
● 43 percent said they would never vote for McGreevey, but for reasons other
than his sexuality.
● 49 percent said they would consider voting for McGreevey, depending on the
issues or opponents.
The poll even found that 30 percent of those who identified themselves as
Republicans would consider voting for McGreevey, a Democrat.
"People in this state are so progressive, a straight politician might not have
polled as well," Goldstein said. If on the basis of his sexuality "only 6
percent wouldn't vote for this man, who has all this baggage, my goodness, they
would certainly support an openly gay candidate without the baggage."
The Zogby-Garden State Equality poll, which surveyed 804 New Jersey voters from
April 12 to 14, has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
It was conducted two weeks before the former governor was fired from the Weiner
Lesniak law firm amid ethical questions over McGreevey's representation of
clients with whom he had signed state contracts.
The poll's findings seem in line with a February Star-Ledger/Eagleton-Rutgers
poll that showed McGreevey with a 41 percent favorable rating among voters.
The Garden State Equality-Zogby poll was aimed at measuring public opinion on
gay marriage -- an idea that McGreevey publicly opposed during his
administration.
The legality of gay marriage in New Jersey is tied up in state court. An
appellate court heard arguments in December on a lawsuit filed by seven gay
couples who were denied marriage licenses. A decision could come any time.
Most New Jerseyans -- 55 percent -- would support gay marriage, although 40
percent do not, the poll showed. That is almost identical to findings in a
2003 Zogby poll. It also comports with other recent polls that show 53
percent support in Massachusetts and 51 percent support in New York state.
The levels of support in the Northeast, and specifically New Jersey, are higher
than anywhere else in the United States, Goldstein said.
New Jersey is one of just six states without an explicit ban on same-sex
marriage. Massachusetts is the only one of the six that allows such
marriages.
The poll also showed that New Jersey voters, by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, opposed
the idea of the Legislature putting on the ballot a measure to ban gay marriage.
And four out of five voters surveyed said the Legislature had more pressing
business than to spend time amending the state constitution to ban gay marriage.
"The poll shows that being for gay rights is a total nonfactor for every
politician in New Jersey," Goldstein said.
Deborah Howlett covers politics. She may be reached at
(609) 989-0273 or dhowlett@starledger.com.
|
