Wisconsin Poll Finds Mixed Attitudes On ACA, But Little Support For Repeal

A new Wisconsin poll finds mixed attitudes on the Affordable Care Act, but little support for repealing it.

Marquette University polled 800 registered Wisconsin voters last week, asking about a variety of state and federal topics. One question about the Affordable Care Act found 50 percent have an unfavorable view of the health care reform law. Thirty nine percent support it, which is a small rise in favorability since a poll two months ago.

Marquette pollster Charles Franklin says the survey also found 60 percent want to keep the law and improve it, while 36 percent want to repeal and or replace the act.

“You see quite a difference between … the unhappiness with the law,” Franklin said, “but that doesn’t translate into strong support for completely repealing [it].”

Franklin also says the poll shows Wisconsin voters are likely to neither punish House members who have been big backers of the health care law, or ones that want to repeal it: “It seems pretty clear in conjunction with ‘what do you want?’, that people don’t want either of these polar opposites. They’re really looking for something in between,” Franklin said.

Other federal highlights in the Marquette poll find President Obama’s job approval rating rebounding slightly, but still negative. U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan polls slightly positive, but 25 percent of the state doesn’t know much about the man who was the GOP vice presidential candidate 18 months ago. The poll reports about 40 percent still don’t have much of an opinion about GOP Sen. Ron Johnson, halfway into his first term.