Poll shows Renew Houston with a lead

The supporters of the Renew Houston effort, now known as Proposition 1 on the ballot, have released a poll showing solid support for their proposal.

The Vote FOR Proposition 1 campaign released a new poll today that shows voters approving the measure – by a margin of almost two to one – to create a dedicated, pay-as-you-go fund to upgrade Houston’s streets and drainage systems.

“Voters understand – and are not happy with – the condition of Houston’s streets and drainage… and a large majority believes Proposition 1 is a responsible solution,” says a new report issued by the Kitchens Group, a professional polling firm retained by the campaign…

In the new poll, which was conducted from September 6–9, 61 percent of voters said they would vote for the measure after hearing the question that will appear on the November ballot. After learning about the costs of the measure, voters continued their strong support, with 58 percent voting for the measure and 31 percent voting against it.

The polling memo is here. I have inquired about getting crosstabs but have not yet received them. I will note that they used what looks like a decent likely voter screen for this:

Five hundred likely 2010 general election voters in Houston, Texas were interviewed in a random sample conducted September 5-8, 2010. Voters included in the sample had voted in the 2006 general election or registered since 2006 and voted in two elections other than the 2008 general election. Respondents were verbally screened for voter registration and their likelihood of voting in the November 2010 election. The sample was balanced according to all known demographic factors. All interviews were conducted by telephone. The margin of error for this survey is ± 4.4%, with a 95% confidence level.

Based on that, I have a reasonable level of confidence that this is a good sample, though I’d still like to see the crosstabs. I’m moderately surprised to see this much support for Renew Houston, given that it’s still not clear to me who their base is, and I haven’t see any push for it as yet. It’s also not clear to me what will happen if a funded opposition effort materializes. Finally, you will note that they lead with the ballot language, which doesn’t mention any cost, then inform the respondents about the $5 monthly fee, which may predispose some folks to being supportive. Still and all, this is a good start for them.

UPDATE: Since I wondered about who Renew Houston’s base was, I should mention that they got an endorsement from Scenic Houston yesterday. Here’s the press release for that, and here’s a list of their supporters so far.

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2 Responses to Poll shows Renew Houston with a lead

  1. Robert Derr says:

    WOW… a poll paid for and released by Renew Houston shows solid support for their proposal by a 2 to 1 margin. That’s really, really rich!!!

  2. Pingback: KHOU polls Mayor Parker’s job performance – Off the Kuff

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