Marquette Poll Reveals Support For Both Vouchers, Public Education

A new poll shows both narrow support for expanding the private school voucher program and strong backing of public education.

Governor Scott Walker wants to expand taxpayer-funded school vouchers beyond Milwaukee and Racine, to about nine other Wisconsin communities.

A statewide poll from Marquette University shows 37 percent of people responding want voucher schools for all of Wisconsin, while another 14 percent back an expansion similar to what Walker wants. 42 percent either want no expansion or the voucher program to be shut down.

But the poll also says more than 72 percent have a favorable view of public schools, with about 80 percent happy with the public schools in their community. So Marquette pollster Charles Franklin says there is some tension in the data.

“If you came to these data with the impression that the public is widely unhappy with public schools, you’d be wrong. There’s just no evidence here; you saw it with the favorability items that by and large, people are pretty happy with public education. But that doesn’t prevent them from considering vouchers and the choice element of that as being a potentially positive thing. “

Franklin says according to regional data, the strongest support for voucher expansion is in the Milwaukee area, with the Madison area very slightly in favor, Green Bay region slightly against, and the west and northern parts of the state more clearly against.

The Marquette poll also shows general support for funding increases for public schools, though a reluctance to raise property taxes.