Michigan voters are in favor of indoor mask mandates, but not for requiring COVID-19 vaccinations, according to a new WDIV/Detroit News poll.
Survey results show 63% of voters support a requirement for people to wear masks in indoor places, including 67.2% of Independent voters. Republican voters strongly oppose mask requirements.
The poll shows 67.8% of those with two vaccine shots and 78.2% of those with booster shots support a mask requirement, but 65.0% of those not vaccinated oppose a mask requirement.
The numbers change when we look at requiring vaccination to enter public venues.
About 52.1% of Michigan voters oppose requiring proof of vaccination to entire indoor public venues like restaurants, bars, theaters and sporting events, including 56% of Independent voters.
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Voters that have received two shots are split on the requirement 48.0%-49.6%. Boosted voters support the requirement 62.5%-28.4%. And 96.0% of those that will not get vaccinated oppose the requirement.
More findings on COVID and vaccinations
The WDIV/Detroit News poll found 32.5% of voters said they have contracted COVID. The most significant demographic differences in the percentage of respondents that have/have not contracted COVID came due to age and vaccination status. 45.5% of those in their 40s have contracted COVID, compared to only 15.4% aged 65 and over.
The least likely to have contracted COVID are those who have received a booster shot at 19.6%. And 47.0% of those that will not get vaccinated have contracted COVID. 55.3% of voters report knowing someone personally that has died from COVID.
- 41.1% of Michigan voters believe the state has seen the worst of COVID, while 35.8% of voters say the worst is yet to come. Democratic voters are considerably more pessimistic about COVID than Independent and Republican voters.
- 69.5% of likely voters report receiving at least one vaccination shot:
- 2.8% said they have received one shot.
- 19.9% said they have received two shots.
- 46.8% said they have received their booster shot.
- 6.1% said they will eventually get vaccinated.
- 16.4% said they will not get vaccinated.
- 2.8% said they could not get vaccinated for medical reasons.
- 5.3% refused to answer.
In January 2021, as COVID vaccinations were just rolling out, 21.2% of Michigan voters said they would not get the shot. One year later, that number remains unchanged with 16.4% saying they will not get the vaccination and 5.3% refusing to say if they will get the vaccination.
The largest demographic pocket of voters that will not get vaccinated is 44.0% of “Trump Republican” voters. Comparatively, only 22.1% of “Classic Republican” voters said they will not get vaccinated.
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Vaccines for children
Parents of children were asked the vaccination status of their children -- 46.7% of parents have at least partially vaccinated some of their children (some children are too young for vaccinations).
- 36.1% of children have been vaccinated.
- 5.9% said some of their children have been vaccinated.
- 4.7% said they are waiting on appointments to finish vaccinations.
- 8.9% of parents said they plan to wait to vaccinate their children.
- 2.4% said their child cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons.
- 4.1% said they are unsure if they will vaccinate their children.
- 33.1% said they will not vaccinate their children
- 4.7% refused to answer the question.
The survey found that 81.8% of parents that are unvaccinated said they will not vaccinate their children. Only 17.9% of Metro Detroit parents said they would not vaccinate their children. But 46.2% of Out-State parents said they would not vaccinate their children.
Opposition to vaccinating children continues to rest among Republican parents. 64.3% of “Trump Republican” parents will not vaccinate their children. There are also large differences by education levels with high school educated parents nearly twice as likely not to vaccinate their children as compared to college educated parents.
Student vaccine mandates
Michigan voters support requiring children to be vaccinated for COVID, as they are currently required for diseases like polio, mumps and rubella by a margin of 53.5%-37.6%.
- 43.5% strongly support the requirement, while 31.7% strongly oppose the requirement.
But parents, specifically, oppose the requirement by a margin of 36.7% support to 52.1% oppose.
Voters without children support the requirement by a margin of 60.0% support to 31.9% oppose.
- 68.5% of voters over the age of 65 years support the requirement.
Find more Michigan COVID-19 news here.
METHODOLOGY
The Glengariff Group, Inc. conducted a Michigan statewide survey of November 2022 likely general election voters. The 600 sample, live operator telephone survey was conducted on January 3-7, 2022 and has a margin of error of +/-4.0% with a 95% level of confidence. 25.0% of respondents were contacted via landline telephone. 75.0% of respondents were contacted via cell phone telephone. This survey was commissioned by WDIV Local 4 News and the Detroit News.