Majority Support NYS Deal with Amazon

Census 2020: Voters Agree “Important to Count Every New Yorker”

NY’ers Split Right Down the Middle on Online Sports Betting

Press Release Crosstabs

Loudonville, NY. By 56 to 36 percent New Yorkers approve of the recently announced deal between Amazon and New York which grants up to $3 billion in state and city incentives to Amazon in return for the online retailer locating its corporate offices in Queens where it is projected to generate 25,000 jobs, according to a new Siena College poll of New York State registered voters released today. Eighty-five percent of voters say it is either very (60 percent) or somewhat (25 percent) important that New York State strive to count every single New Yorker in the 2020 Census. Equal percentages, 44 percent support and 44 percent oppose broadening the current sports betting law to allow for online sports betting.

“Even as Amazon is said to be reexamining the deal with New York to locate in Queens, by twenty points New York voters approve of the deal,” said Siena College Research Institute director, Don Levy. “Upstate voters are evenly divided but suburban voters strongly approve and in New York City, where some local activists have voiced opposition, voters approve of the deal by 23 points.

“New Yorkers strongly agree with Governor Cuomo on the 2020 Census when he said ‘let’s go out there and count every New Yorker so we get what we deserve in the state of New York’,” Levy said. “Nine in ten Democrats and independents say it is at least somewhat if not very important for New York to strive to count every single New Yorker while nearly three-quarters of Republicans agree.”

A large majority, 58 to 37 percent supports adding a question to the 2020 Census that asks whether or not each person is a United States Citizen. Large majorities of Republicans and independents support asking about citizenship in the Census while Democrats do not. Only 18 percent of New Yorkers would like New York State to spend more than the $10 million that was spent to promote participation in the Census in 2010. Thirty-seven percent support continuing the state’s spending at the same rate as in 2010 while 36 percent of all New Yorkers and 55 percent of Republicans think the state should spend less than $10 million on promotion.

“Voters, aware that the state is expected to soon allow sports betting at the four upstate commercial casinos, are evenly divided on broadening the sports betting law to allow for online betting,” Levy said. “Democrats lean towards opposition while Republicans and independents lean towards supporting online betting. Men are in favor while women are opposed, and while voters in the City are evenly divided, by narrow counts suburban voters favor online sports betting but Upstate voters by 46 to 42 percent oppose.”

Majority of Voters Support Medical Aid in Dying Legislation

“By 58 to 34 percent, voters support legislation that would allow a doctor to prescribe lethal drugs that a terminally ill patient with demonstrated decision making capacity would take on their own in order to end their own life,” Levy said. “Voters of every party support this potential legislation with support among independents being the greatest. Across the political spectrum liberals and moderates support the proposal but conservatives lean towards opposition.”

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This Siena College Poll was conducted February 4-7, 2019 by telephone calls conducted in English to 778 New York State registered voters. Respondent sampling was initiated by asking for the youngest male in the household. It has an overall margin of error of +/- 4.3 percentage points including the design effects resulting from weighting. Sampling was conducted via a stratified dual frame probability sample of landline and cell phone telephone numbers (both from ASDE Survey Sampler) from within New York State. Data was statistically adjusted by age, party by region, and gender to ensure representativeness. The Siena College Research Institute, directed by Donald Levy, Ph.D., conducts political, economic, social and cultural research primarily in NYS. SCRI, an independent, non-partisan research institute, subscribes to the American Association of Public Opinion Research Code of Professional Ethics and Practices. For more information, call Don Levy at (518) 783-2901. For survey cross-tabs: www.Siena.edu/SCRI/SNY.