Utahns, by and large, are an optimistic bunch, and that hope even translates to the future administration of GOP President-elect Donald Trump, a new UtahPolicy poll finds.
However, that belief is severely partisan, finds UPD pollster Dan Jones & Associates.
Jones asked what Utahns’ feelings are for the upcoming Trump administration: Very optimistic, somewhat optimistic, somewhat pessimistic or very pessimistic?
He finds:
- 59 percent of Utahns are very or somewhat confident about how Trump will run the executive branch of government.
- 40 percent are pessimistic – the Trump glass is half empty of water for them.
- And 2 percent didn’t know or didn’t have an opinion.
Interestingly enough, there is a big statistical difference – 10 percentage point — between men and women.
You guessed it, men are much more optimistic about Trump than are women:
- 61 percent of men believe Trump’s administration will work out.
- But only 51 percent of women believed so.
- 31 percent of men are pessimistic about Trump, which 46 percent of Utah women are.
In homogeneous Utah, one rarely finds such a difference of opinion between men and women.
The partisan divide over Trump is clear:
- Utah Republicans are optimistic about him, 82-17 percent.
- Democrats? Ohhh no – 90 percent are pessimistic about his upcoming four years leading the country, only 5 percent are optimistic.
- Political independents are barely on his side, 51-46 percent.
And Jones finds a clear religious demarcation, as well:
- Very active Utah Mormons (about 60 percent of the population) have good thoughts about a Trump administration, 69-32 percent.
- Protestants, not so much; they are barely hopeful for Trump, 51-48 percent.
- Catholics are Trump non-believers, 53 percent are pessimistic about him, 46 percent are optimistic.
- Those with no religion have few doubts: They are pessimistic about Trump, 69-27 percent.
Trump announced several weeks ago that he was going on a “victory tour” of the 30 states that voted for him Nov. 8.
That would, of course, have included Utah, where Trump won the state in a three-way race but didn’t get 50 percent of the vote. He lost the vote in Salt Lake County, the state’s largest.
But late last week Trump said he was taking a holiday break, and wouldn’t be going to any other states before the end of the year.
It is still unclear when, or if, Trump will visit Utah before he takes the oath of office Jan. 20.
During the campaign, Trump said several times that he had “problems” winning support from Utahns and Mormons.
Jones polled 614 Utahns from Dec. 8-12. The new survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.95 percent.
