Latest news with #CenterforCommunityStudies
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
North country voices worry over economy and policy impacts in JCC survey
WATERTOWN, N.Y. (WWTI) – Jefferson Community College has released its most recent survey that delved into what north country residents thought about current issues. The survey from the Center for Community Studies takes a look what residents of Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence and Oswego counties think about local, state and national issues. Jefferson Community College gets $4 million grant for training center One of the main issues for area residents are 82-percent feel that something needs to be done about vacant and/or blighted properties. A total of 53-percent of residents survey feel that Canadian tourism is important to the area's economy. Overwhelmingly, a total of 69-percent feel that tariffs will increase the cost of items purchased in Northern New York. Other economic issues that were a concern was economy and jobs (77 percent) and inflation (76 percent). New York Governor Kathy Hochul only showed a 16-percent favorability rating while 71-percent view her in a negative light. North country residents said a 69-percent rate that New York State is headed in the wrong direction. A total of 45-percent think the country is going in the wrong direction. A couple of things area residents weren't happy with was the recent handling of the prison guard strike with 67-percent saying the state didn't go a good job. A total of 70-percent don't approve of New York State paying for the health care of undocumented immigrants through Medicaid. President Donald Trump still holds a high favorability rating in the north country with a 49-percent rating. However, 22-percent of Trump voters making less than $50,000 couldn't guarantee if they would vote for the President. Further results of the survey can be found at Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
JCC's Center for Community Studies survey shows Trump's favorability just below 50% in north country; Hochul's at 16%
Apr. 30—WATERTOWN — Jefferson Community College's Center for Community Studies has released its annual Spring Current Issues survey of the north country. While President Donald J. Trump's favorability is slightly less than half at 49%, Gov. Kathleen C. Hochul had a much lower rating at 19%. Trump's north country favorability rating is slightly higher than the 42% approval rating he received from a Reuters/Ipsos poll also released on Wednesday. 39% of those surveyed responded that they view the Trump administration unfavorably and 11% stated they don't have an opinion or don't know. For Hochul, only 16% viewed her favorably and 14% stated they didn't know or had no opinion. "Consistent with the opinions expressed earlier in this study regarding the direction things in this country, and New York State, north country residents are much more positive in their assessment of President Trump than they are in their assessment of Governor Kathy Hochul," the study reads. The survey also studied the north country's reaction to statewide issues and their satisfaction with the direction things are heading. Half of those surveyed stated they believe there should be more low-income housing, 35% stated that enough has been done, and 15% say they are unsure. Overall, those in the north country overwhelmingly believe that Canadian business and tourism are important to the economy, as 85% of those surveyed agreed. Only 2%, though, of those studied that voted for former Vice President Kamala D. Harris, give Trump a favorable rating. On the other side, Trump received an 87% favorability among those that voted for him in the last election. Similarly, the president rated favorably in one of his key issues, as 61% of those surveyed approved of the way he is addressing illegal immigration. The center used live telephone interviews, random email invitations, random MMS text messages, and live intercept sampling on Fort Drum. Questions ranged from local issues such as the economy and low-income housing while also asking about national and global issues such as illegal immigration and reducing the cost of living and inflation for Americans. Where north country residents appear to be split is on the topic of tariffs. 47% of those surveyed approved of imposing tariffs on basically all goods imported to the United States. 43% say they disapprove and 10% say they are unsure. Those surveyed also believe that tariffs will raise prices, as 69% agree that they will see a higher cost at the stores. 16% say they don't believe costs will increase and 15% say they don't know. Another issue that has gotten a lot of attention is the slashing of the federal workforce by Trump's self-made Department of Government Efficiency, led by billionaire and the world's richest man Elon Musk. 49% of those surveyed support the continuation of making further significant cuts to the federal workforce. 39% responded that they oppose and 12% said they were unsure or neutral. 92% of those Trump voters surveyed stated they would vote for the president again. 2% said they would change their vote and 6% say they are not sure. Notably, 22% of those surveyed with an income of $50,000 or less that voted for Trump did not definitely state they would vote for him again. Those numbers are similar for Harris voters as 96% of those surveyed that voted for the former vice president stated they would vote for her again. 3% said they would change their vote while 1% stated they are unsure. The 1,902 adult residents surveyed are from four north country counties: Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence, and Oswego counties. Of the 1,902 people, 522 residents come from Jefferson County, 473 are from Lewis County, 469 from Oswego County, and St. Lawrence County had 438 people respond. Full survey results can be found at
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
JCC survey finds north country views similar to rest of nation
Feb. 12—WATERTOWN — The Noon Rotary Club got a deeper look Wednesday at results from the most recent survey by Jefferson Community College's Center for Community Studies. Joel LaLone, the center's research director, told the club that many north country statistics mirror the rest of the country. The center conducted the survey just before the November election. "This is learning about our electorate, our communities," LaLone said. One area that north country residents feel has gotten worse over the years is their personal finance situation. When residents were asked in 2017 if their family's personal finance situation has gotten worse, stayed the same, or gotten better in the last 12 months, just under 10% responded that it has gotten worse in Lewis County, and between 10-20% of those surveyed in Jefferson County and St. Lawrence County said their situation has gotten worse. In the center's latest survey, those numbers have skyrocketed. 52% of Lewis County residents responded that their personal financial situation has gotten worse. That number for St. Lawrence County is 50% and for Jefferson County it is at 41%. The data from LaLone also showed the overall accuracy of the surveys as they predicted now-President Donald J. Trump would receive 61% of the vote in Jefferson County. He actually received 62% of the vote. In Lewis County, the center's presidential prediction was two percentage points lower than the actual, and the biggest difference was in St. Lawrence County as the center was four percentage points lower than the final vote number. There was between a 2% and 8% margin of error. Men across the tri-county region overwhelmingly supported Trump, with the president receiving 68% of their vote. Overall, women supported Trump as well, at 51%. A national exit poll from Edison that was provided by the Center for Community Studies showed that of the 22,966 surveyed, Trump was expected to get 55% of the male vote and 45% of the female vote. 93% of those who self-identify as conservative voted for Trump and the same percentage of liberals voted for former Vice President Kamala D. Harris in the tri-county region. Nationally, according to the Edison poll, 91% of those that stated they were liberal said they were voting for Harris, while 94% of those who said they were a Republican stated they were going to vote for Trump. Trump also was projected to have a 97% retention rate in the north country, meaning those who voted for him in 2020 also voted for him in 2024. Nationally, the number from the Edison poll was 95%. Harris also had a tremendous amount of loyalty, but less so than Trump as 94% of those who voted for former president Joseph R. Biden in the tri-county region said they were going to vote for Harris. Nationally, that percentage was 93% for Harris. One area Trump focused on during both of his presidential campaigns was on immigration, and north country data may show why he focused so heavily on that issue. LaLone said if a person said immigration was their top concern, they were 99% likely to vote for Trump. About 10% of those surveyed said immigration was the biggest issue facing the country. Of those who said protecting democracy was the main issue during the election, 90% were projected to vote for Harris. "No matter all of the political commercials and rhetoric that we went through in those four years, the loyalty was massive in northern New York," LaLone said. Also of note, 100% of men ages 40-59 surveyed in Lewis County with no college experience but a high school diploma were expected to vote for Trump, data from the Center for Community Studies stated. More information on the latest data collected can be found online and the full report can be viewed at
