FLORIDA VOTERS HAPPY WITH HURRICANE IRMA RESPONSE, MIGHT GIVE BOOST TO GOV. SCOTT SENATE HOPES

MEDIA CONTACT: Jim Hellegaard
561-319-2233, jhellegaard@fau.edu 

BOCA RATON, Fla. (November 8, 2017) –A majority of Floridians are pleased with the state’s preparedness for and response to Hurricane Irma and believe it will boost Gov. Rick Scott’s expected 2018 run for the U.S. Senate, according to a statewide survey by the Florida Atlantic University Business and Economics Polling Initiative (FAU BEPI). 

When asked to rate the state’s preparedness, 68 percent of Floridians said it was good to excellent. Debris cleanup efforts got slightly lower ratings, with 56 percent of respondents saying it was good to excellent and 17 percent calling it poor. Scott’s response to Hurricane Irma was rated good to excellent by 72 percent of voters, with more than 56 percent saying it will help him if he decides to run for the U.S. Senate.              

“Floridians are satisfied with the state’s preparedness and response to Hurricane Irma,” said Monica Escaleras, Ph.D., director of the BEPI. “Although he hasn’t formally declared his candidacy for the U.S. Senate, Gov. Scott maintained a very high profile during that time, which has helped how voters view him going into what most people expect is a likely run for U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson’s seat in 2018.”

Overall, 49 percent of voters have a favorable opinion of Scott, while 39 percent have an unfavorable opinion of the two-term governor. Nelson had a 45 percent favorability rating, while 22 percent view him unfavorably.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s approval rating among Florida voters rose slightly to 41 percent from 37 percent in August, while his disapproval rating remained at 47 percent.

A majority of Floridians (56 percent) think global climate change is contributing to the strength and frequency of hurricanes, while 30 percent said it is not. Voters were split when asked if the state of Florida is doing enough to prepare for sea-level rise and protect coastal areas that could be flooded, with 37 percent saying yes and 39 percent saying no. 

Three out of four respondents (76 percent) said they are somewhat to very concerned about the state of the environment in the country. Overall, 41 percent think environmental issues should be a high to very high priority for the president and Congress, while 13 percent think it should be a low priority.

The survey, which polled 500 Florida registered voters Nov. 2-5, was conducted using an online sample supplied by Survey Sampling International using online questionnaires and via an automated telephone platform (IVR) using registered voter lists supplied by Aristotle, Inc. The survey has a margin of error of +/- 4.5 percentage points. Responses for the entire sample were weighted to reflect the statewide distribution of the Florida population. The polling results and full cross-tabulations are available at www.business.fau.edu/bepi.

- FAU -

About FAU BEPI:
The Florida Atlantic University Business and Economic Polling Initiative conducts surveys on business, economic, political and social issues with a focus on Hispanic attitudes and opinions at regional, state and national levels via planned monthly national surveys. The initiative subscribes to the American Association of Public Opinion Research and is a resource for public and private organizations, academic research and media outlets. In addition, the initiative is designed to contribute to the educational mission of the University by providing students with valuable opportunities to enhance their educational experience by designing and carrying out public opinion research.

About Florida Atlantic University
Florida Atlantic University, established in 1961, officially opened its doors in 1964 as the fifth public university in Florida. Today, the University, with an annual economic impact of $6.3 billion, serves more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students at sites throughout its six-county service region in southeast Florida. FAU’s world-class teaching and research faculty serves students through 10 colleges: the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, the College of Business, the College for Design and Social Inquiry, the College of Education, the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Graduate College, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Medicine, the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing and the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. FAU is ranked as a High Research Activity institution by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University is placing special focus on the rapid development of critical areas that form the basis of its strategic plan: Healthy aging, biotech, coastal and marine issues, neuroscience, regenerative medicine, informatics, lifespan and the environment. These areas provide opportunities for faculty and students to build upon FAU’s existing strengths in research and scholarship. For more information, visit www.fau.edu.