National Survey of Hispanic Voters on Environmental Issues

Transcription

1 NATIONALSURVEY OFHISPANICVOTERSON ENVIRONMENTALI SSUES

2 Methodology The Sierra Club commissioned Bendixen & Associates, a professional survey research company located in Coral Gables, Florida, to conduct a national poll of Hispanic voters. The purpose of the poll was to measure the opinions of the Hispanic electorate about various environmental issues. The results and findings in this memo are based on a poll of 1000 interviews conducted between March 20 th and March 30 th, All interviews were conducted by telephone by professionally trained bilingual interviewers in either English or Spanish, depending on the respondent s preference. Each interviewer utilized Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI) to conduct the interviews. All respondents were screened to ensure that they were Hispanic and currently registered to vote. The total sample of 1000 interviews was comprised of five separate subsamples. Samples of 100 interviews each were conducted in Florida, Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada. The fifth sample of 600 interviews was conducted throughout the rest of the nation. The data was aggregated into one central database and weighed to create a representative national sample of the Hispanic electorate. The sampling error for the total sample of 1000 interviews is 3 percentage points at the 95 percent level of confidence. The margin of error for the sub-samples in Florida, Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado is ten percentage points.

3 Major Findings 1. The overwhelming majority of Hispanic voters say that energy and environmental issues have a significant impact on their quality of life and the overall health of their family. More than 80 percent of Latino voters said that energy and environmental issues impact have a lot or some impact on the quality of life and health of their families. These voters have a high level of exposure to toxic sites refineries, chemical plants, incinerators and agricultural fields - near their home or place of work. This is especially true in states like Colorado and New Mexico. Other Hispanics report problems with polluted air in their city, polluted water in their neighborhood, landfills near their homes and lead and mercury poisoning. How much would you say energy and environmental issues impact the quality of life of your family? A lot / Some 58% 25% 83% A little / None at all 11%4% 15% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 2. The level of importance that Hispanic voters give to environmental issues has religious, spiritual and cultural overtones. More than 90 percent of all Latino voters feel a moral responsibility to take care of God s creations on earth such as the forests, oceans, lakes and rivers. Hispanic voters seem to have a spiritual connection to nature. When asked about the thoughts that come to mind with the word nature, the largest group of Latinos mentions feelings of peace, tranquility, happiness and good emotions. It is also clear from the answers to this question that Hispanics value

4 green spaces, forests and the wilderness. Protecting such land is important to Hispanic culture, as family gatherings in beaches and parks are an important element of the Hispanic lifestyle. Do you agree or disagree with the following statement? I have a moral responsibility to take care of the creations of God on this earth the wilderness and forests, the oceans, the lakes and the rivers. 4% 3% 93% Agree Disagree No answer 3. The Hispanic electorate considers energy and global warming to be a major problem and appears to be well informed about the issue. Energy and global warming is viewed to be one of the two most important environmental problems for Hispanic families and four-fifths of these voters consider it to be a major problem. More than 80 percent of these voters have received information about global warming. Their major source of information on this issue is English-language and Spanishlanguage television channels. Fear of the catastrophic consequences of global warming appear to have had a major impact on these voters more than three-quarters feel that it is true that global warming will bring about the melting of the polar caps and rising sea levels resulting in catastrophic flooding throughout coastal areas. Fear of the dire consequences of global warming is highest among immigrant and Spanish-dominant voters. Polluted air and water is the other environmental issue that is mentioned by a substantial percentage of Latinos.

5 Do you think the following statement is true or false? Global warming will bring about the melting of the polar ice caps and rising sea levels. This will result in catastrophic flooding throughout coastal areas. 14% 9% 77% True False No answer 4. Most Hispanics feel that the supply and cost of energy have a substantial impact on the environment. The overwhelming majority of these voters feel that their family can help to curb pollution and global warming by being more conscientious about conserving energy. The Hispanic electorate makes a clear link between energy usage and global warming. More than 80 percent say that energy issues and our nation s energy supply and costs have a substantial impact on the environment. A similar percentage agrees that shifting to a new clean energy economy could create millions of jobs, improve the quality of the environment and protect everyone s children. Hispanic voters across the nation recognize that they can help protect the environment through the personal choices they make. Hispanic voters are willing to buy energy-efficient appliances and light bulbs for their homes, to improve the fuel efficiency of their cars and to explore alternative energy sources like wind or solar. It is interesting to note that Hispanic voters believe that the government and the big oil companies are most responsible for the rising price of gasoline and oil in the United States. Only a few Latinos blame consumers like me or environmental organizations for this problem.

6 Who do you think is most responsible for the rising price of gasoline and oil? Government 49% Big oil companies 31% Consumers like me 12% Environmental organizations Car companies 3% 1% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 5. A solid majority of the Hispanic electorate in the United States is willing to take political action to help improve the environment. Most Latino voters are willing to take political action in support of environmental protection by supporting candidates and contacting their representatives in Congress. Others are willing to attend meetings or rallies in their city or to joining an environmental group. Are you willing to take political action to help improve our environment? 27% 34% 12% 8% 19% Yes, support a candidate Yes, write or call Congressman Yes, join environmental organization Yes, attend a meeting or rally No / No answer

7 6. Outdoor activities such as going to the beach, exploring national parks, picnicking, fishing and camping are very important to the Hispanic electorate. Going on a picnic over the weekend with family and friends is a very important part of the Hispanic culture. Therefore, protecting the environment and green spaces has a special meaning to Latinos it helps them stay in touch with the people they care about. Nearly ninety percent of respondents said that outdoor activities are important to themselves and their families. The types of outdoor activities enjoyed most often by Hispanics are: going on picnics and to the beach, exploring national parks, fishing and camping. Not surprisingly, there was some variation in these responses by state. The top outdoor activity in Florida was going to the beach; fishing was most popular in Colorado and New Mexico while in Nevada exploring the national parks was the outdoor activity mentioned by most Hispanics. Top Two Most Popular Outdoor Activities 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0% 36% 31% Going to Exploring beach national parks 27% 20% 17% 10% 4% Picnics Fishing Camping Hiking Hunting 7. The growth of the middle class Hispanic voters is impacting on the political views of this electorate on environmental issues. This national poll allows us to better understand the composition of the Hispanic electorate in the United States. More than 10 million Latino voters are expected to participate in the presidential election of November, The survey indicates that a significant segment of middle class voters is emerging within the Hispanic electorate. According to this latest data, more than a third of all Latino voters have a college education and earn more than $50,000 a

8 year. These middle class Latino voters are more likely to be informed about and supportive of environmental issues. A solid majority of Hispanic voters is younger than 50 years of age and the electorate is evenly split between those born in the United States and those born in Latin America and Puerto Rico. Hispanic voters are concentrated in Southern and Western states. Sixty percent of Hispanic voters identify themselves as Democrats, 15 percent as Republicans and a quarter as Independents. How much information have you received on the issue of global warming? Crossed by Education and Annual Household Income A lot of information answers only High school or less 17% College degree or more 39% Less than $25,000 18% $100,000 or more 48% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%

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