The Pacific Poll 01-1: OC Voter Priorities for 2001 The Energy Crisis Opening the Mexican Border

The purpose of this study was to assess voter attitudes towards the energy crisis in California, opening the Mexican border and general policy priorities for 2001. Respondents were asked about their top priorities for local officials in 2001, whether or not they have heard of Governor Gray Davis, the Public Utilities Commission, Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas and Electric, the Orange County Board of Supervisors, and Mexican President Vicente Fox and were asked if they had a favorable or unfavorable attitude toward each. Respondents were also asked who they felt was the most responsible for the energy crisis and how worried they were about electricity shortages or blackouts in their area. Respondents were asked how seriously they viewed the possibility of utility bankruptcy, and whether or not they felt the state should allow the utilities to go bankrupt. Further, respondents were asked a series of possible solutions to the energy crisis and how much of a difference they thought it would have on the current energy crisis. They were also asked how much they spent last month on their electricity bill. Respondents were asked a series of questions about proposals to open the border between the U.S. and Mexico: whether or not they favor doing so, who they felt would benefit the most from an open border, and perceived impact on the local economy. Respondents were asked whether they trusted the Orange County Board of Supervisors to handle several issues, including: counting election ballots, zoning and land use, budgeting and finances and deciding the future of the Marine Corps Air Station El Toro. Demographic v ariables include the length of time the respondent has been living in Orange County and the United States, political party identification, strength of party identification, actual party registration of the respondent (from county election sources), education, the number of housemates over the age of 18, date of birth, marital status, race (if they identified Hispanic, a sub-category is included), household income, and gender. There are also geographic variables including city of the respondent and a recoded variable for region of the county (North, Central, or South).