Miguel Beristain
The Tennessee State Capitol Building, as photographed July 28, 2022. (Hustler Multimedia/Miguel Beristain)
The Fall 2022 Vanderbilt Poll surveyed 1,180 registered Tennessee voters from November 8-28. With an error margin of ± 3.4%, the poll reveals growing divides within the Republican Party, as well as shifting opinions about abortion laws in Tennessee since the overturning of Roe v. Wade (1972).
Conducted biannually since 2011, the poll is co-directed by political science professor Joshua Clinton and Vice Provost John Geer and relies on phone-based interviews with registered voters randomly selected from a list. Results are weighted by age, sex, education, race/ethnicity and state region to match the demographics of Tennessee voters. Topics surveyed by the poll include attitudes toward polarization, the economy, education and climate change.
Geer said he hopes the results of the poll will help Tennesseans understand one another better.
“Our hope is that Tennesseans have a better appreciation of what their fellow citizens think on key issues,” Geer said. “The results should be one part of a state-wide conversation about what policies are best for the state.”
Representatives of the Vanderbilt College Democrats and the Vanderbilt College Republicans did not respond to the Hustler’s request for comment on the poll’s results.
Unity and polarization
The poll found that, regardless of party affiliation, 59% of respondents perceived Americans as being “mostly divided.” However, beliefs about polarization at the state level were more varied, with 25% of respondents believing that Tennesseans are “mostly united” and 20% believing that Tennesseans are “mostly divided.”
The results also revealed that 69% of respondents agreed with the statement that their elected officials should work with members of the opposing party even if it means compromising on some of their “values and priorities.”
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