E&ENews
PM
Monday, June 5, 2006
With gas
prices hovering at $3 a gallon, most American voters are driving less and
cutting household spending and favoring Democrats to manage energy prices,
according to a poll by
Fifty-six
percent of voters surveyed said they have cut back significantly on their
driving. Low-income voters seem to be most affected, with 67 percent making less
than $30,000 saying they are driving less, compared to 34 percent of those
making more than $100,000 a year.
The poll,
released on June 2, found that driving habits also broke down along party lines:
47 percent of Republican voters said they are driving less, compared to 60
percent of Democrats.
Forty-six
percent of voters said Democrats would do a better job on gas prices, compared
to 25 percent who thought Republicans are better suited for the task. Among
Republicans, 59 percent said their party would do a better job, while 78 percent
of Democrats and 45 percent of independent voters say Democrats will do
better.
An
overwhelming majority, 90 percent, blame oil companies for the their financial
pain at the pump. Eighty-two percent blame oil-producing countries, 69 percent
blame normal supply and demand, 64 percent blame President Bush and 52 percent
Americans who drive gas-guzzlers.
The poll of
1,534 registered voters nationwide was conducted May 23-30 with a sampling error
margin of plus or minus 2.5 percentage
points.