Virginians are solidly opposed to President Obama’s plans to allow Syrian refugees into the country, with many residents concerned that doing so would make a future terrorist attack more likely, according to a new survey sponsored by the University of Mary Washington’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies.
Forty percent of Virginians surveyed said they strongly opposed an administration proposal that would allow up to 70,000 foreign refugees, including 10,000 from Syria, to enter the U.S. over the next two years. Another 16 percent of those surveyed said they were somewhat opposed. Only 18 percent said they strongly supported the plan, with another 20 percent somewhat supporting the initiative. The rest were uncertain.
By a margin of 61 percent to 29 percent, Virginians said they believed that allowing Syrian refugees into the U.S. would increase the risk of a future terrorist attack on U.S. soil. The remainder of those surveyed said they were uncertain of the possible impact.
The telephone survey of 1,006 adult Virginians was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International (PSRAI) from Nov. 4 to 9, 2015. About 60 percent of the respondents were contacted via cellphone and about 40 percent via landline. The interviews took place before last week’s terrorist attacks in Paris.
“There was not much support for President Obama’s Syrian refugee policies before the terrorists struck in Paris last Friday night, and I suspect the limited support found in our survey has evaporated over the weekend,” said Stephen Farnsworth, professor of political science at UMW and director of the university’s Center for Leadership and Media Studies. “Despite months of horrific images in the media of refugees struggling to escape a region filled with violence, President Obama has made little headway, at least in Virginia, in building support for hosting Syrians refugees here.”
In the days since the terrorist attacks, a number of Republican presidential candidates have criticized Obama administration plans to allow Syrian refugees into the country, expressing concerns that would-be migrants would not be sufficiently investigated. Several Republican governors objected to Syrian migrants being housed in their states.
On Monday, Obama re-iterated his support for admitting 10,000 Syrian refugees to the U.S. “Slamming the door in their faces would be a betrayal of our values,” he said. “Our nations can welcome refugees who are desperately seeking safety and ensure our own security. We can and must do both.”
Republicans surveyed before the Paris attacks were highly critical of the resettlement idea, with 56 percent strongly opposed and another 16 percent somewhat opposed. Democrats were notably less critical of the president’s initiative, with 23 percent strongly opposed and another 19 percent somewhat opposed. Among independents, 41 percent were strongly opposed and another 14 percent were somewhat opposed.
Northern Virginia was the region of the state most willing to allow refugees to enter the U.S., with 49 percent supporting the president’s plan. The western counties of the state were most critical, with only 28 percent supporting the plan.
Latinos were more supportive of the refugee resettlement proposal, with 49 percent support, than were either African-Americans (30 percent) or whites (37 percent).
For the full survey, see the Topline.
Contact: Stephen J. Farnsworth at 703-380-3025 or sfarnswo@umw.edu.
The Fall 2015 Virginia Survey, sponsored by University of Mary Washington (UMW), obtained telephone interviews with a representative sample of 1,006 adults living in Virginia. Telephone interviews were conducted by landline (402) and cell phone (604, including 303 without a landline phone). The survey was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International (PSRAI). Interviews were done in English by Princeton Data Source from November 4 to 9, 2015. Statistical results are weighted to correct known demographic discrepancies. The margin of sampling error for the complete set of weighted data is ± 3.5 percentage points.