Priorities

[ Home ] [ Up ] [ Priorities ] [ Abortion ] [ Budget/Taxes ] [ Crime ] [ Disasters ] [ Education ] [ Energy ] [ Environment ] [ Food ] [ Foreign Affairs/Defense ] [ Guns ] [ Health Policy ] [ Illegal Drugs ] [ Immigration ] [ Law/Civil Rights ] [ Race and Ethnicity ] [ Social Security ] [ Space ]

Problems and Priorities See also, Handling the nation's problems: Obama vs. Romney | Democrats vs. Republicans | Obama Administration

CBS News Poll Feb. 6-10, 2013. N=1,148 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today?" Open-ended

		%
	Economy and jobs	40
	Budget deficit/National debt	11
	Guns	4
	Immigration	3
	Health care	3
	Other	35
	Unsure	4

Quinnipiac University Poll. Jan. 30-Feb. 4, 2013. N=1,772 registered voters nationwide. Margin of error ą 2.3.

"As President Obama prepares to deliver his State of the Union address, please tell me which one of the following issues you are most interested in hearing him address: the economy, the federal budget deficit, health care, gun policy, foreign policy, immigration, or the environment?"

		%
	The economy	35
	The federal budget deficit	20
	Gun policy	15
	Health care	12
	Foreign policy	5
	Immigration	4
	The environment	3
	Unsure	6

CNN/ORC Poll. Jan. 14-15, 2013. N=814 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.5.

"Which of the following is the most important issue facing the country today? The economy. The federal budget deficit. Health care. Gun policy. Foreign policy. Immigration. The environment." Options rotated

		%
	The economy	46
	The federal budget deficit	23
	Health care	14
	Gun policy	6
	Foreign policy	4
	Immigration	3
	The environment	2
	Other (vol.)	1

Bloomberg National Poll conducted by Selzer & Company. Dec. 7-10, 2012. N=1,000 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.1.

"Which of the following do you see as the most important issue facing the country right now? Immigration. Health care. The federal deficit. Terrorism. Taxes. The situation in the Middle East. Entitlement spending on Social Security and Medicare. Unemployment and jobs." Options rotated

		%
	Unemployment and jobs	34
	Federal deficit	19
	Social Security, Medicare spending	11
	Health care	9
	Taxes	7
	Situation in the Middle East	5
	Immigration	4
	Terrorism	2
	Other (vol.)	3
	None of these (vol.)	1
	Unsure	5

National Public Radio poll conducted by Democracy Corps (D) and Resurgent Republic (R). Oct. 23-25, 2012. N=1,000 likely voters nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.1.

"Which of the following types of issues are most likely to affect your vote for president and Congress this year: economic issues like jobs and unemployment; fiscal issues like taxes, spending, deficits, and debt; social issues like abortion and gay marriage; or national security issues like terrorism, Afghanistan, and Libya?" Options rotated

		%
	Economic issues	57
	Fiscal issues	16
	Social issues	14
	National security issues	8
	None/Other/Unsure	5

NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Bill McInturff (R). Sept. 26-30, 2012. N=832 likely voters nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.4.

"There are many important issues in this presidential campaign. When it comes to deciding for whom you will vote for president, which one of the following is the single most important issue in deciding for whom you will vote? The economy. Social issues and values. Social Security and Medicare. Health care. The federal deficit. Foreign policy and the Middle East. Terrorism." If "all": "Well, if you had to choose the most important issue, which would you choose?"

		%
	The economy	46
	Social issues and values	15
	Social Security and Medicare	12
	Health care	10
	The federal deficit	7
	Foreign policy and the Middle East	6
	Terrorism	1
	None/Other (vol.)	1
	Unsure	1

Bloomberg National Poll conducted by Selzer & Company. Sept. 21-24, 2012. N=1,007 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.1.

"Which of the following do you see as the most important issue facing the country right now? Unemployment and jobs. The federal deficit. Health care. Gas prices. The situation in the Middle East. Taxes. Immigration. Terrorism." Options rotated

		%
	Unemployment and jobs	43
	Federal deficit	14
	Health care	11
	Gas prices	7
	Situation in the Middle East	6
	Taxes	4
	Immigration	3
	Terrorism	3
	Other (vol.)	4
	None of these (vol.)	1
	Unsure	4

CBS News/New York Times Poll. Sept. 8-12, 2012. N=1,170 registered voters nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"What is the most important issue to you in deciding how you will vote for president this year?" Open-ended

		%
	Economy and jobs	37
	Health care	11
	Budget deficit/National debt	4
	The President/Barack Obama	4
	Education	3
	Taxes/IRS	3
	Abortion	2
	Medicare/Medicaid	2
	Women's issues	2
	Misc. social issues	2
	Other	20
	Unsure	10

CBS News Poll. Aug. 22-26, 2012. N=1,218 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today?" Open-ended

		%
	Economy/Jobs	50
	Budget deficit/National debt	7
	Health care	5
	Immigration	2
	Education	2
	War/Peace	2
	Politicians/Government	2
	Partisan politics	2
	Misc. social issues	2
	Other	21
	Unsure	5

Pew Research Center. June 7-17, 2012. N=1,563 registered voters nationwide. Margin of error ą 2.9.

"Which ONE of the following issues matters most to you in deciding your vote for president this year: jobs, the budget deficit, health care, Social Security, immigration, or gay marriage?" Options rotated

		%
	Jobs	35
	Budget deficit	23
	Health care	19
	Social Security	11
	Immigration	5
	Gay marriage	4
	Other (vol.)	2
	Unsure	2

CNN/ORC Poll. May 29-31, 2012. N=1,009 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"Which of the following is the most important issue facing the country today? The economy. The federal budget deficit. Health care. The situation in Afghanistan. Illegal immigration. Terrorism. Policies toward gays and lesbians." Options rotated

		5/29-31/12	3/24-25/12	12/16-18/11
		%	%	%
	The economy	52	53	57
	The federal budget deficit	18	20	16
	Health care	14	11	13
	Terrorism	5	2	4
	Illegal immigration	4	4	5
	Afghanistan	3	6	3
	Policies toward gays, lesbians	1	2	1
	Other (vol.)	2	1	2
	Unsure	1	1	-

ABC News/Washington Post Poll. May 17-20, 2012. N=1,004 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.5.

"What is the single most important issue in your choice for president?" Open-ended

		%
	Economy/Jobs	52
	Health care/Repeal of Obamacare	7
	Morals/Family values	5
	Ethics/Honesty/Gov't corruption	4
	Other	27
	Unsure	4

Reuters/Ipsos Poll conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs. April 12-15, 2012. N=891 registered voters nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.3.

"Which one of these issues would you say is most important when thinking about the current presidential election campaign? Jobs and the economy. Health care. Family values. Leadership. National security. Taxes. Foreign policy. Representing change."

		%
	Jobs and the economy	53
	Health care	14
	Family values	9
	Leadership	8
	National security	5
	Taxes	3
	Foreign policy	3
	Representing change	2
	None	1
	Unsure	1

CBS News/New York Times Poll. Feb. 8-13, 2012. N=1,197 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"Which one issue would you most like to hear the candidates for president discuss during the 2012 presidential campaign?" Open-ended

		%
	Economy and jobs	44
	Health care	8
	Budget deficit/National debt	4
	Education	3
	Taxes/IRS	3
	Immigration	2
	Politicians/Government	2
	Partisan politics	2
	Other	21
	Unsure	11

CBS News/New York Times Poll. Jan. 12-17, 2012. N=1,154 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"In deciding who you would like to see elected president this year, which one of the following issues will be most important to you: abortion, or the federal budget deficit, or the economy, or health care, or illegal immigration, or something else?" Options rotated

		%
	Economy	56
	Federal budget deficit	15
	Health care	14
	Illegal immigration	5
	Abortion	3
	Something else	6
	Unsure	1

Bloomberg National Poll conducted by Selzer & Company. June 17-20, 2011. N=1,000 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.1.

"Which of the following do you see as the most important issue facing the country right now? Unemployment and jobs. Government spending. The federal deficit. Health care. The war in Afghanistan. Gas prices. Immigration. Taxes." Options rotated

		%
	Unemployment and jobs	42
	Government spending	17
	The federal deficit	13
	Health care	10
	War in Afghanistan	5
	Gas prices	4
	Immigration	3
	Taxes	1
	Other (vol.)	2
	Unsure	3

Fox News Poll conducted by Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R). May 15-17, 2011. N=910 registered voters nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"Which one of the following issues do you think the president and Congress should focus on right now? The economy and jobs. The deficit and government spending. Health care. Terrorism and national security. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Immigration." Options rotated

		%
	Economy and jobs	50
	Deficit and government spending	22
	Health care	8
	Terrorism and national security	5
	Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan	4
	Immigration	2
	All (vol.)	7
	None/Other (vol.)	1
	Unsure	1

Bloomberg National Poll conducted by Selzer & Company. March 4-7, 2011. N=1,001 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.1.

"Which of the following do you see as the most important issue facing the country right now? Immigration. Health care. The federal deficit and government spending. The war in Afghanistan. Unemployment and jobs." Options rotated

		3/11	12/10
		%	%
	Unemployment and jobs	43	50
	Federal deficit and spending	29	25
	Health care	12	9
	War in Afghanistan	7	7
	Immigration	3	5
	Other (vol.)	4	1
	Unsure	2	3

CBS News/New York Times Poll. Jan. 15-19, 2011. N=1,036 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"Which of the following do you think is the most important thing for Congress to concentrate on right now: job creation, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the federal budget deficit, illegal immigration, health care, or something else?"

		%
	Job creation	43
	Health care	18
	Federal budget deficit	14
	Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan	12
	Illegal immigration	7
	Something else	3
	Unsure	3

CBS News Poll. Nov. 7-10, 2010. N=1,137 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"Of all the problems facing this country today, which one do you most want the new Congress to concentrate on first when it begins in January?" Open-ended

		%
	Economy and jobs	56
	Health care	14
	Budget deficit/National debt	4
	Immigration	2
	Education	2
	War/Iraq/Afghanistan	2
	Taxes/IRS	2
	Other	9
	Unsure	9

USA Today/Gallup Poll. Oct. 28-31, 2010. N=1,140 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 4.

"Looking ahead, which of the following should be the highest priority for Congress after the election: repealing the new healthcare law, passing a new economic stimulus bill designed to create jobs, cutting federal spending, or extending all the federal income tax cuts enacted during the Bush administration?" Options rotated

		%
	Passing new stimulus bill	38
	Cutting federal spending	24
	Repealing health care law	23
	Extending all income tax cuts	8
	Other (vol.)	4
	Unsure	3

Reuters/Ipsos Poll conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs. Oct. 28-31, 2010. N=1,075 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"I'd like you to think now about what Congress should focus on next year in 2011. For each issue, please tell me if you think it is crucial, important, or not important for Congress to focus on as a key issue in 2011. . . ."

		Crucial	Important	Not important	Unsure
		%	%	%	%
	"Jobs"
	10/28-31/10	72	25	2	-
	10/7-11/10	65	32	3	1

	"The budget deficit"
	10/28-31/10	57	38	5	1
	10/7-11/10	56	35	7	2

	"Health care"
	10/28-31/10	53	41	6	-
	10/7-11/10	48	43	9	-

	"Taxes"
	10/28-31/10	44	47	7	2
	10/7-11/10	37	52	9	2

	"Energy"
	10/28-31/10	36	53	10	1
	10/7-11/10	30	58	11	2

	"The environment"
	10/28-31/10	31	53	15	1
	10/7-11/10	26	56	17	1

	"Afghanistan"
	10/28-31/10	37	46	13	3
	10/7-11/10	35	44	17	4

Pew Research Center survey. Oct. 27-30, 2010. N=2,373 registered voters nationwide. Margin of error ą 2.5.

"Of the following six issues, which ONE would you say is MOST important to your vote for Congress this year: the job situation, health care, the deficit, immigration, the situation in Afghanistan, or terrorism?" Options rotated

		%
	The job situation	39
	Health care	25
	The deficit	17
	Immigration	6
	The situation in Afghanistan	5
	Terrorism	3
	Other (vol.)	2
	None of these (vol.)	1
	Unsure	3

Bloomberg National Poll conducted by Selzer & Company. Oct. 7-10, 2010. N=721 likely voters nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.7.

"Which of the following do you see as the most important issue facing the country right now: unemployment and jobs, the federal deficit and government spending, health care, the war in Afghanistan, or immigration?" Options rotated

		%
	Unemployment, jobs	49
	Federal deficit, spending	27
	Health care	10
	War in Afghanistan	7
	Immigration	5
	Other (vol.)	1
	Unsure	1

CBS News Poll. Oct. 1-5, 2010. N=1,129 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 3.

"What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today?" Open-ended

		%
	Economy/Jobs	54
	Health care	7
	Budget deficit/National debt	3
	Immigration	3
	Education	2
	Moral values/Family values	2
	The President/Barack Obama	2
	Other	22
	Unsure	5

USA Today/Gallup Poll. Aug. 27-30, 2010. N=1,021 adults nationwide. Margin of error ą 4.

"How important will each of the following issues be to your vote for Congress this year? Will it be extremely important, very important, moderately important, or not that important? How about . . . ?"

		Extremely important	Very important	Moderately important	Not that important	Unsure
		%	%	%	%	%
	"The economy"
	8/27-30/10	62	31	6	1	-

	"Jobs"
	8/27-30/10	60	32	6	1	-

	"Federal spending"
	8/27-30/10	51	30	15	3	1

	"Corruption in government"
	8/27-30/10	51	30	14	4	1

	"Health care"
	8/27-30/10	49	30	15	5	1

	"Terrorism"
	8/27-30/10	47	28	17	6	1

	"Immigration"
	8/27-30/10	38	27	23	11	1

	"The situation in Afghanistan"
	8/27-30/10	35	33	24	6	2

	"The environment"
	8/27-30/10	28	32	29	12	-

FOX News/Opinion Dynamics Poll. June 29-30, 2010. N=900 registered voters nationwide. MoE ą 3.

"Which ONE of the following do you think is most important for the president to be working on right now? The economy and jobs. The oil spill in the Gulf. The deficit and government spending. Health care. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Immigration. Terrorism and national security. Taxes." Options rotated

		%
	Economy and jobs	32
	Gulf oil spill	14
	Deficit and government spending	12
	Health care	6
	Iraq and Afghanistan	6
	Immigration	4
	Terrorism and national security	4
	Taxes	1
	All (vol.)	20
	None/Other (vol.)	1
	Unsure	1

Kaiser Family Foundation Kaiser Health Tracking Poll. June 17-22, 2010. N=1,066 registered voters nationwide.

"Thinking ahead to the November 2010 congressional elections, how important will each of the following issues be to your vote for Congress this year? [See below.] Will that be extremely important, very important, somewhat important, or not too important to your vote for Congress this year?"

		Extremely important	Very important	Somewhat important	Not too important	Unsure/ Refused
		%	%	%	%	%
	"The economy"
	6/17-22/10	52	39	7	2	-

	"The Gulf Coast oil spill"
	6/17-22/10	45	35	13	6	1

	"The budget deficit"
	6/17-22/10	44	35	15	5	1

	"Health care"
	6/17-22/10	42	36	13	7	1

	"Unemployment"
	6/17-22/10	40	41	14	4	-

	"The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan"
	6/17-22/10	37	38	17	8	-

	"Dissatisfaction with government"
	6/17-22/10	37	32	20	9	2

	"Energy policy"
	6/17-22/10	26	39	24	8	2

NBC News/Wall Street Journal Poll conducted by the polling organizations of Peter Hart (D) and Bill McInturff (R). June 17-21, 2010. N=1,000 adults nationwide. MoE ą 3.1.

"Let me list some issues that have been proposed for the federal government to address. Please tell me which one of these items you think should be the top priority for the federal government. Job creation and economic growth. The Gulf Coast oil spill and energy. The deficit and government spending. National security and terrorism. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Health care. Social issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage." If more than one: "Well, if you had to choose just one, which do you think should be the top priority?" Options rotated

		%
	Job creation and economic growth	33
	Gulf Coast oil spill and energy	22
	Deficit and government spending	15
	National security and terrorism	9
	Iraq and Afghanistan	9
	Health care	7
	Social issues	2
	All equally (vol.)	3

Problems and priorities continued

HOME | TABLE OF CONTENTS | SEARCH THE SITECopyright Š 2013 POLLING REPORT, INC., and polling/sponsoring organizations