Summary:
- A large majority of North Carolina voters sees climate change as a threat
- Broad, bipartisan majority want more limits on HOAs’ powers
- Voters remain closely divided on the Black Lives Matter movement
On Monday, we released Part 1 of the September edition of the Carolina Forward Poll. Today, we’re dropping Part 2, which turns to climate change, energy, housing and the Black Lives Matter movement.
In this month’s poll of 2024 likely North Carolina voters, a whopping 69% of voters indicated that they view climate change as a threat to the United States – 48% of them, a serious one:
The breadth of agreement found here is yet more proof that climate change has become a near-consensus issue in most of American society. Climate denial is highly localized among a small subset of Republican base voters, who are generally quite isolated in the electorate. These results are highly consistent with national polling that shows similarly widespread consensus about the threat of climate change.
On a related note, we asked voters about their preferred energy policy. A remarkable proportion of voters – varying around a third overall – favor phasing out fossil fuels like oil, coal and gas altogether. But a plurality of voters support an “all of the above” strategy, in which renewables and fossil fuels are both a part of the overall energy mix:
While not included in this survey, previous editions of the Carolina Forward Poll have found that a majority of voters also support the expansion of nuclear power in North Carolina. Two-thirds of voters also support pressuring Duke Energy, the state’s monopoly utility, to convert more of their energy generation to renewables, taking advantage of the enormous cost advantages of solar and wind.
Turning to housing policy, a resounding consensus of voters say they’d support new limitations on homeowners’ associations (HOAs) powers. 64% overall, and majorities of every group measured, say they would support placing new limits on HOAs’ ability to take legal action or foreclose on property owners:
In this session of the state legislature, a bill that would place certain limitations on HOAs’ powers (though far milder ones) has gathered broad bipartisan support. Like much housing policy generally, frustration with overzealous HOAs cuts across many traditional party and ideological lines.
Finally, following up from a Carolina Forward Poll from 2022, we examined the level of support for the Black Lives Matter movement. Overall, not much has changed since then. North Carolina voters remain almost perfectly divided over BLM, with neither those in support nor in opposition having a decisive edge:
Overall, North Carolina remains a very moderate, highly politically competitive state, with a large number of cross-pressured voters. The state’s electorate remains in flux – a constant frustration to would-be gerrymanderers. The results set up a major clash as the 2024 elections draw nearer.