New Poll Shows Continued Support for School Choice in North Carolina

(Nyamekey Daniel, The Center Square) Support for school choice among North Carolinians has continued to stay strong, according to a new Civitas poll released during National School Choice Week.

Civitas surveyed 600 bipartisan voters from various parts of the state from Jan. 21 to Jan. 23. The survey results showed 81% of North Carolinians believe parents should have the ability to select the school their child attends. More than half of the respondents said they support charter schools, private school vouchers and education savings accounts.

Last year, 82% of voters said they believed parents should have the ability to select the school their child attends.

Respondents were mostly women (55%) and around 60% of respondents were age 50 or older (60.1%).

30.8% of respondents have children enrolled in K-12 schools. About 35% were registered as Republicans, 30% were registered as Democrats and 33% were Independent. However, 44.9% identified themselves as conservatives.

Support for school choice among North Carolina voters was the strongest among women between 18 and 34 years old (90%).

The poll also showed that close to 60% of voters said they support charter schools (58.4%).

Critics say school choice promotes segregation and absorbs money the state should use for traditional schools.

Most North Carolinians are displeased with the direction of education in the state. More than 66% of respondents said K-12 education in North Carolina was on the wrong track (66.2%). Most respondents said that they were in favor of state teachers (62.9%), but 41.1% said if they were to select a different school for their child through a choice program, it would be because of the qualify of education.

This poll bodes well for Republicans in the midterm elections, as education, school choice and the parent’s rightful role in their child’s upbringing are set to be hot-button topics.