Republicans 4x more likely than Democrats to say govt reopening society too slowly after coronavirus

Republicans are at least four times more likely than Democrats to say that government officials in their area are reopening society too slowly after coronavirus, according to a new Just the News Daily Poll with Scott Rasmussen.

The poll found 42% of Republicans and just 10% of Democrats say that governments are moving too slowly to reopen. In contrast, 51% of Democrats and 26% of Republicans say the reopening is moving too quickly. The poll also found 33% of Democrats and 26% of Republicans say the reopening is going at an "About Right" pace.

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Just the News Daily Poll

With Scott Rasmussen

"Ballotpedia reports that 47 states have reopenings in progress, plus one state did not order any businesses to close," said Rasmussen, an editor at large for Ballotpedia. "Even in my home state of New York, there has been some easing. Most Americans — 57% — say they’re either OK with the reopening process (32%) or want to reopen faster."

Among those who know that the fatality rate is lower than initially expected, 72% say things are proceeding either at the right pace (34%) or too slowly (38%). On the other hand, among those who mistakenly believe that the fatality rate is not lower than initially expected, 57% believe government officials are moving too quickly to reopen society.

"Still, 38% who believe that things are moving too quickly," Rasmussen also said. "Given that just about every state is reopening at some level (both legally and informally), this is not an endorsement of ongoing lockdowns. Instead, it’s an expression of concern about just how fast to reopen. And, obviously, what that means can vary from state to state. A person in New York who says things are going too quickly has something entirely different in mind from a person who says Florida is moving too quickly."

Just the News Daily Poll respondents were asked “In terms of easing lockdown restrictions, are government officials in your area moving too quickly to re-open society or not quickly enough?" They replied as below:

• 38% Too Quickly
• 25% Not Quickly Enough
• 32% Balance About Right
• 6% Not Sure

The national survey of 1,200 registered voters was conducted May 21-23, 2020 by Rasmussen, a polling veteran. Margin of sampling error: +/- 2.8% for full sample. 

To see the full demographic cross-tabulations for this polling question, click below:

To see the methodology and sample demographics for this polling question, click below: