TOPLINES
General Population poll of 1051 (unweighted) adults (+/-3.02%) in South Carolina
ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA – According to the latest Winthrop Poll, 37% of South Carolinians support a ban on most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy while 43% are in opposition. When it comes to allowing exceptions for abortions in cases where the pregnancy threatens the woman’s life or health, the pregnancy is the result of rape, or the baby is likely to be born with severe disabilities or health problems, a majority of South Carolinians are in favor.
Legislation requiring a completed background check before a buyer can take possession of a firearm even if the background check takes longer than 3 days to come back – what would close the “Charleston loophole” – is strongly supported in South Carolina. Seventy-five percent believe the sale of firearms should be restricted to those who are 21 years of age and older while 17% disagree. Republicans and Democrats are in general agreeance when it comes to the questions concerning gun policy and the sale of firearms addressed in this poll.
Over half of South Carolinians support a ban on the sale of high-capacity magazines to the general public. Democrats are firm in their support of this ban while Republicans are more evenly divided on the issue.
A majority of South Carolinians favor laws or policies requiring transgender athletes to compete on teams that match the sex they were assigned at birth, not the gender with which they identify.
When asked about the state of the economy, most South Carolinians believe the economies of both the United States and the state of South Carolina are worse than they were a year ago. When it comes to personal finances, 44% say their finances are worse, 21% better, and 33% in the same place as a year ago.
Approval ratings from those expressing an opinion: President Joe Biden with 34% approval, 66% disapproval. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster with 54% approval, 46% disapproval. US Senator Lindsey Graham with 43% approval, 57% disapproval. US Senator Tim Scott with 60% approval, 40% disapproval.
Full Results & Methodology: www.winthrop.edu/winthroppoll/2023-may-winthroppoll-results.aspx
Winthrop Poll Director Scott Huffmon will be unavailable for media inquiries in June. For additional information, or to set up a later interview with Huffmon, please contact Judy Longshaw at longshawj@winthrop.edu or 803/323-2404 (office) or 803/984-0586 (cell).
Keep Reading for More In-Depth Analysis
Approval Ratings
A majority of South Carolinians disapprove of the way President Joe Biden is handling his job as president. Results using all responses show 30% approval, 57% disapproval, and 13% with no opinion. Of those with an opinion, 66% disapprove and 34% approve.
Out of all responses, approval for Governor Henry McMaster is positive among those who have an opinion. Over half of those with an opinion, 54%, approve of the way he is handling his job while 46% disapprove.
More South Carolinians disapprove of the way U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham is handling his job than they do approve. Of those who have an opinion, 57% disapprove of the senator’s handling of his job while 43% approve.
U.S. Senator Tim Scott’s approval remains higher than his senior counterpart. Many South Carolinians are still unsure of the junior senator who officially announced his candidacy for president on the last day of this poll; however, of those expressing an opinion, 60% approve while 40% disapprove.
Gun Policy, Firearm Sales, and Background Checks
Currently, when a person buys a firearm, the seller may choose to allow the buyer to take possession of the firearm without a completed background check if the background check takes longer than 3 days to come back. This is often referred to as the “Charleston loophole” since the 2015 assault on Emanuel AME Church in Charleston.
Almost three-quarters of South Carolinians support legislation that would require a completed background check before the buyer can take possession. Between parties, Republicans and Democrats are in general agreement. Among Republicans, 73% support this legislation while 18% oppose it. Among Democrats, 81% support while 15% oppose. Winthrop Poll Director Scott Huffmon notes, “While we didn’t use the phrase, ‘Charleston Loophole’ in the actual question, since the Mother Emanuel massacre, closing the Charleston Loophole and requiring fully completed background checks has become an obvious point of agreement between self-identified Republicans and Democrats. The rank and file of each party support this measure.”
A majority of South Carolinians also favor requiring criminal background checks on all gun buyers, including those who buy at gun shows and private sales. The opinions of Republicans and Democrats almost mirror each other on this issue with almost 90% in favor and less than 10% in opposition.
Regarding age requirements for purchasing a firearm, three-quarters of South Carolinians believe firearm sales should be restricted to those who are 21 years of age or older. Republicans and Democrats show a split, but strong majorities in both parties favor the higher age requirement. Around three-quarters of Republicans and 83% of Democrats want to restrict firearm sales to those 21 years of age and older. Nineteen percent of Republicans and 11% of Democrats oppose such an age restriction. Dr. Huffmon adds, “Apparently, both parties are okay with requiring at least as much of a barrier to buying a firearm as to buying a hard seltzer.”
Regarding so-called “red-flag laws,” seventy-nine percent of South Carolinians strongly or somewhat support a gun policy that would allow a family member to seek a court order to temporarily take away guns if they feel a gun owner may harm themselves or others. Among Republicans, 73% support this policy. Among Democrats, support jumps to 91%. When asked about allowing a police officer to seek the same court order, support dips to 69% overall: 66% among Republicans and 84% among Democrats.
Huffmon notes, “Once again, there is broad agreement among rank-and-file party members over red-flag laws and age restrictions. The vanguard of the Republican Party, and Second Amendment activists in particular, often present the conservative opinion on firearms as monolithic, but nothing could be further from the truth.”
Concerning high-capacity magazines, 55% of South Carolinians support banning sales to the general public while 28% oppose such a ban. Seventy-three percent of Democrats support a ban on the sale of high-capacity magazines to the general public while 17% oppose a ban. Republicans are much more divided on the issue with fewer than half, 47%, in support of a ban and 35% in opposition.
According to Huffmon, “The question of high-capacity magazines reveals a sharper divide between the political parties. While nearly three-quarters of Democrats support a ban on high-capacity magazines, fewer than half of Republicans do. However, each party should note the diversity within their ranks. Nearly one in five Democrats actively oppose such a ban while in excess of four in ten Republicans are okay with a ban on high-capacity magazines.”
Abortion
The topic of abortion remains at the forefront in South Carolina as abortion bans continue to volley between the branches of state government. Just before the recent six-week abortion ban, which included some exceptions, was passed into law and then temporarily blocked by a state judge, 37% of South Carolinians said they support a ban on most abortions after six weeks while 43% said they oppose. The six-week abortion ban exhibited a sharp partisan divide, with over half of Republicans favoring the ban while just over a quarter of Democrats favored the ban.
Huffmon spoke to the difficulty of polling on such a complex topic: “The six-week ban elicits strong emotions. We decided to err on the side of full information when designing the question. We offered arguments from both sides and used medically accurate terminology in hopes of getting real opinions and not just emotional reactions.”
While many Southern states have banned abortion with no exceptions, strong majorities in South Carolina believe abortion should be legal in some circumstances, such as when the life or health of the mother is at stake, the pregnancy was caused by rape, or the baby is likely to be born with severe disabilities or health problems.
If a pregnancy threatens the woman’s life or health, 81% of South Carolinians believe the woman should be able to obtain a legal abortion. This percentage dipped to 75% among Republicans and increased to 90% among Democrats.
Seventy-eight percent of South Carolinians believe a woman should be able to obtain a legal abortion if the pregnancy is the result of rape. Support was lower among Republicans at 69% and higher among Democrats at 88%.
Support for a legal abortion fell to 57% if the reason for the abortion is that the baby is likely to be born with severe disabilities or health problems. Twenty-one percent do not believe abortion should be legal in this situation and 20% are unsure. Three-quarters of Democrats support allowing for legal abortion in this situation while 43% of Republicans agree, 29% say it should not be legal, and 26% are not sure.
According to Huffmon, “Abortion is another topic on which the activists from each party attempt to project their views as monolithic. A minority, but consistent, number of Democrats oppose abortion under several conditions while a significant number of Republicans believe that there are several conditions under which a woman should be able to obtain a legal abortion. Not all the people who consistently vote for a party are in absolute lockstep on all of the issues.”
Economy
The majority of South Carolinians believe the United States economy is worse than it was a year ago. Almost half believe the economy of the state of South Carolina is worse than a year ago, as well. Thinking about their personal situations, 44% of South Carolinians say their personal finances are worse than a year ago while 20% say they are in a better situation and 33% are in about the same place.
Transgender Athletes
A majority of South Carolinians favor laws or policies requiring they compete on teams that match the sex they were assigned at birth, not the gender with which they identify. Eighty percent of Republicans and almost half of Democrats favor this type of policy. Almost a quarter of Democrats are unsure. Huffmon notes, “While the party division on requiring transgender athletes to compete on teams of their birth-assigned sex is stark, even among South Carolina Democrats we don’t see a groundswell of support for trans athletes. Previous polls have shown broad support for the rights of gays and lesbians – especially the right to marry; however, the public is still clearly grappling with issues related to transgender athletes.”
Ideology
Despite surprisingly moderate opinions on some issues, South Carolina remains a fundamentally conservative state. Whether labels of liberal/conservative are broadly defined, or moderate is broadly defined, self-proclaimed conservatives outnumber self-proclaimed liberals by a roughly 2 to 1 margin. According to Huffmon, “It’s no surprise that the buckle of the Bible Belt continues to be a fundamentally conservative state. We know that even if 9 in 10 African Americans tend to vote Democratic, they are also more likely than Whites to be highly religious. Religiosity tends to be a fair predictor of self-identified conservative leanings. Between Republican Whites and religious African Americans, you’re going to get a population that considers itself conservative, even if not all embrace every conservative policy.”
