SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — South Dakota voters are split on two ballot measures in this year’s election, according to a new poll from KELOLAND News, Emerson College and The Hill.
The poll was conducted from Oct. 19-21 with a sample of 1,500 voters who were very likely to vote in the upcoming election. The poll has a plus or minus margin error of 2.4 percentage points.
A slim majority of voters (51%) plan to vote yes on Constitutional Amendment D, which would expand Medicaid in the state. Twenty-eight percent are undecided on their vote while 22% plan to vote no.
The undecided voter percentage means nearly one in three voters has not yet made decision.
But on Initiated Measure 27, which would legalize recreational marijuana, 51% said they plan to vote no. Forty percent plan to vote yes and 10% are undecided.
When the responses are broken down by party identification, more Democrats plan to vote in favor of Medicaid expansion than Republicans. Among Democrats, 75% said they plan to vote in favor while 35.5% of Republicans said they’d vote in favor. Most Independents (58.1%) said they will vote yes.
Independents are classified as Independents or other, which would include other political parties.
Independents (53.5%) and Democrats (58.5%) plan to vote in favor of Initiated Measure 27 recreational marijuana. A large majority of Republicans (65.6%) plan to vote no.
More younger voters plan to vote in favor of both measures. Those 18 to 34 (56.2%) were more likely to vote in favor of expansion of Medicaid than those 65 and older (48.2%). About 51% of voters from 35 to 64 planned to vote in favor.
Recreational marijuana was favored by 59% of voters in the 18 to 49 age range. Support weakens with age as 56.7% in the 50 to 64 range and 63.8% 65 and older plan to vote no.
The more education, the more likely the voter planned to vote in favor of recreational marijuana. Those with college degrees (47%) or post graduate work (48%) planned to vote yes on recreational marijuana.
With expansion of Medicaid, a plurality (46.6%) of voters with a high school degree or less planned to vote yes. Support grew with an increased level of education.
Among men and women, there is equal support (52%) from both in favor of expanding Medicaid. More women, 54%, plan to vote against recreational marijuana than men who are at 46.7%.
View the full results from Emerson College online; look for the file under the Key Takeaways.