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Explore our coverage of government and politics.

VPR Poll: Overall Results & Full Data

Emily Alfin Johnson
/
VPR

Who leads the race for president and the key statewide offices in Vermont? What are the top issues on voters' minds and how much do they trust some of Vermont's institutions? VPR has once again partnered with The Castleton Polling Institute to ask Vermonters what you think about the big issues facing our state and the choices voters face on Nov. 8.

Review all the results at-a-glance below. For further insight, or to conduct your own analysis, you can download the full results of the poll, including the full data and the poll's methodology.

The VPR Polls are made possible by the VPR Journalism Fund.

VPR POLL: OVERALL RESULTS

Margins Of Error: For an explanation of the poll's methodology and margins of error, see the Appendix A below.

How closely do you follow news about the upcoming presidential election?
Very closely   42%
Somewhat closely   34%
Not very much   15%
Not at all   8%
Don't know/refused   0%
Total Respondents   650

How closely do you follow news about the upcoming election for Vermont's governor?
Very closely   20%
Somewhat closely   36%
Not very much   28%
Not at all   16%
Don't know/refused   0%
Total Respondents   650

How familiar are you with the candidates running for Governor in Vermont?
Very familiar   20%
Somewhat familiar   41%
Not too familiar   25%
Not at all familiar   14%
Total Respondents   650

How familiar are you with the candidates running for Lieutenant Governor in Vermont?
Very familiar   9%
Somewhat familiar   24%
Not too familiar   31%
Not at all familiar  36%
Total Respondents   650

How familiar are you with the candidates running for Attorney General in Vermont?
Very familiar   8%
Somewhat familiar   16%
Not too familiar   28%
Not at all familiar  48%
Total Respondents   650

How likely are you to vote, either by absentee ballot or in person, in the general election on November 8, 2016?
Very likely   79%
Somewhat likely   7%
Not very likely   2%
Not at all likely   11%
Don't know   0%
Refused   0%
Total Respondents   650

If the presidential election were held today, would you vote for Donald Trump the Republican, Hillary Clinton the Democrat, Gary Johnson the Libertarian, Jill Stein of the Green Party, or for someone else?
Donald Trump   17%
Hillary Clinton   45%
Gary Johnson   4%
Jill Stein   3%
Bernie Sanders   4%
Other   13%
Not sure   10%
Refused   4%
Total Respondents   579

If the election for U.S. Senate were held today, would you vote for Scott Milne the Republican, Patrick Leahy the Democrat, or for someone else?
Scott Milne   22%
Patrick Leahy   59%
Pete Diamondstone   1%
Cris Ericson   2%
Jerry Trudell   0%
Other   4%
Not sure   10%
Refused   2%
Total Respondents   579

If the election for Vermont governor were held today, would you vote for Phil Scott the Republican, Sue Minter the Democrat, Bill Lee the Liberty Union candidate, or for someone else?
Phil Scott   39%
Sue Minter   38%
Bill "Spaceman" Lee   2%
Other   5%
Not Sure   14%
Refused   2%
Total Respondents   579

Credit VPR Poll, October 2016 / VPR
/
VPR
Ticket-splitting: How likely are Vermont voters to vote for presidential and gubernatorial candidates of different parties?

If the Vermont lieutenant governor’s election were held today, would you vote for Randy Brock the Republican, David Zuckerman the Democrat/Progressive, or for someone else?
Randy Brock   26%
David Zuckerman   43%
Boots Wardinski   1%
Other   8%
Not sure   20%
Refused   2%
Total Respondents   579

If the election for Vermont’s attorney general were held today, would you vote for Deborah Bucknam the Republican, TJ Donovan the Democrat, or for someone else?
Deborah Bucknam   12%
TJ Donovan   54%
Rosemarie Jackowski   3%
Other   8%
Not sure   21%
Refused   2%
Total Respondents   579

In general, how much trust and confidence do you have in the mass media, such as newspapers, TV and radio, to report news about the upcoming election fully, accurately and fairly?
A great deal   7%
A fair amount   35%
Not very much   37%
None at all   20%
Not sure / no opinion   1%
Total Respondents   650

How much do you trust the Vermont state legislature to serve the interests of Vermonters?
Trust completely   8%
Trust somewhat   60%
Trust very little   20%
Do not trust at all   9%
Not sure / no opinion   2%
Refused   0%
Total Respondents   650

How much do you trust your town government to serve the interests of your town?
Trust completely   20%
Trust somewhat   54%
Trust very little   16%
Do not trust at all   8%
Not sure / no opinion   2%
Refused   0%
Total Respondents   650

How much do you trust the Vermont Public Service Board to serve the interests of Vermonters?
Trust completely   7%
Trust somewhat   60%
Trust very little   21%
Do not trust at all   8%
Not sure / no opinion   4%
Refused   0%
Total Respondents   650

How much do you trust the Vermont utility companies to serve the interests of Vermonters?
Trust completely   9%
Trust somewhat   51%
Trust very little   26%
Do not trust at all   10%
Not sure / no opinion   2%
Refused   0%
Total Respondents   650

If you had to pick one issue that you'd most like to see the Vermont legislature focus on next session, what would that issue be?
Tax structure / Budget   14%
Jobs / Economy / Cost of living   12%
Health care   13%
Environment / Energy   11%
Opiate addiction / Drug problems   10%
Education (K-12)   9%
Marijuana   6%
Infrastructure generally   2%
College affordability   2%
Guns   1%
Refugee resettlement   0%
Other   5%
Not sure   14%
Refused   1%
Total respondents   650

Credit VPR Poll, October 2016

Do you support or oppose requiring universal background checks for all gun purchases, regardless if sold in a store, gun show, or private sale?
Support   84%
Oppose   12%
Not sure / it depends   3%
Refused   0%
Total Respondents   650

Who should have the final say on where wind power generators are placed?
Landowners   39%
Community members   34%
Public Service Board   12%
Utility companies   2%
Not sure / it depends   12%
Refused   2%
Total Respondents   650

When relocating refugees in the United States, should local communities be permitted to ban refugee resettlement in their communities?
Yes, they should   37%
No, they should not   51%
Not sure / it depends   11%
Refused   1%
Total Respondents   650

Would you support or oppose an effort to resettle refugees in your community?
Support   56%
Oppose   27%
It depends   11%
Not sure   4%
Refused   1%
Total Respondents   650

FULL RESULTS FOR DOWNLOAD: FILES, APPENDICES & METHODOLOGY

  1. Appendices: The Poll's Transparency Initiative Details, Sampling Errors and the Survey Instrument(PDF)
  2. VPR Poll October 2016 Results by Age, Income & Education (XLS File)
  3. VPR Poll October 2016 Results by Age, Income & Education (HTM File)
  4. VPR Poll October 2016 Results by Gender, Party & Region (XLS)
  5. VPR Poll October 2016 Results by Gender, Party & Region (HTM)
  6. Likely Voter Model (PDF)
Jonathan Butler was VPR director of digital strategies until February 2020. He now works at NPR!
Sara Simon was VPR's web developer.
Emily Alfin Johnson was a senior producer for Vermont Public Radio.
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