Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 8, 1995 TAG: 9503080045
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
What's your preference for how political parties should nominate their candidates?
Primaries: 47%
Conventions: 19%
No preference: 23%
Unsure: 11%
Do you favor a law requiring political parties to use primaries or conventions?
Favor law: 28%
Oppose law: 58%
No preference: 5%
Unsure: 9%
Who favors primaries?
50% of Whites favor primaries. Blacks are divided - 33% favor primaries and 32% favor conventions. Could it be that they believe they often wield clout disproportionate to their numbers in a convention?
Support for primaries generally rises with age, and support for conventions falls.
AGE
18-29: 33%
30-49: 48%
50-64: 56%
65 and up: 47%
The more education someone has, the more likely they are to favor primaries.
EDUCATION
High school drop-outs: 36%
High school grads: 40%
Some college: 52%
College graduates: 62%
The more money someone makes, the more likely they are to favor primaries.
\ INCOME
Less than $10,000: 31%
$10,000-$19,999: 46%
$20,000-$29,999: 55%
$30,000-$39,999: 54%
$40,000 and up: 56%
Most liberals favor primaries. Almost half of conservatives say they don't have a preference.
IDEOLOGY
Liberals 59%
Moderates 46%
Conservatives 39%
Party affiliation doesn't seem to make much of a difference. Democrats and Republicans favor primaries at about the same rate. It's the independents - shut out of both parties' conventions - who are most enthusiastic about primaries. Perhaps that's because Virginia allows anyone, regardless of party affiliation, to vote in a primary.
Who wants a law requiring primaries?
Not surprisingly, independents.
PARTY AFFILIATION
Democrats 26%
Republicans 29%
Independents 35%
IDEOLOGY
Liberals, who by definition favor a more activist government, are more interested in seeing a mandate than are conservatives.
Liberals 46%
Moderates 21%
Conservatives 32%
by CNB