POLL FINDINGS

POLL FINDINGS

Among the findings of a Cincinnati Enquirer/Ohio Newspaper Poll:

Seventy-five percent of respondents said they are either “extremely interested” or “very interested” in this year’s election. Among Democrats, the percentage was 65 percent; it was much higher, 86 percent among Republicans. Sixty-three percent of independents said they were “extremely” or “very” interested in the election.

Sixty-eight percent of those polled said they rate Ohio as an “excellent” or “good” place to live. Central Ohioans seem happiest, 76 percent of them called Ohio “excellent” or “good,” while Ohioans in the northeast were the least pleased, 64 percent said “excellent” or “good.”

Three of 10 Ohioans say that, if they could, they would move to another state. And the younger you are, the more likely you want to move; the number jumps to 49 percent among 18-29 year-olds and 43 percent for ages 30-45.

Thirty percent said the most important reason they would move from Ohio is to find “better weather.”

Ohioans were asked how the next governor should deal with a projected multi-billion dollar budget deficit. A majority, 52 percent, said it should be balanced through a combination of tax increases and spending cuts; 37 percent said it should be done through spending cuts only, and only 5 percent said it should be balanced entirely by raising taxes.

Asked what areas of the state budget should be cut, 43 percent said local government funding, followed by prisons and public safety (14 percent) and higher education (12 percent).