Polling by Issue

This polling summary highlights Missouri voters’ approval ratings of:

• President Donald Trump
• U.S. Congress
• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley
• U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt
• Gov. Mike Kehoe
• Missouri state legislature

Polling Summary on Approval Ratings

This polling summary highlights Missouri voters’ ratings of:

• U.S. economy
• Missouri economy
• Public schools in their community
• Public schools in Missouri
• Missouri roads and infrastructure
• Crime in their community
• Race relations in their community

Polling Summary on Issue Ratings

• 39% of voters support state control over the St. Louis Police Department. 48% support local control.
• At least 57% of Democratic, Republican, and Independent voters support background checks for buying guns/firearms. 85% of voters support banning minors from carrying guns on public property without adult supervision.
• 10% or fewer voters support banning all guns, handguns, or hunting rifles.
• 56% of voters are worried about a shooting happening at public schools in Missouri.

Polling Summary on Guns and Public Safety

•  At least 60 percent of Democratic, Republican, and Independent voters support abortion being legal in cases of rape, incest, and when the woman’s life is endangered (Aug. 2022 Poll)
• 44 percent of voters support the proposed ballot initiative to legalize abortion in Missouri. 37 percent oppose. 19 percent are not sure. (Feb. 2024 Poll)

Polling Summary on Abortion

• 45% of Missouri voters agree that the federal government should forgive up to $10,000 in federal student loan debt. 43% disagree (Aug. 2022 Poll).
• 64% of Missouri voters believe that tax-funded Education Savings Accounts should be made available to students in households that earn up to $75,000 (250% of the federal poverty level) (Feb. 2024 Poll).

Polling Summary on Loans and Scholarships

• 56 percent of Missouri voters support same-sex marriage (Aug. 2023 Poll)
• Fewer than 38 percent of Missouri voters support public school bans of books on gay, lesbian, or transgender youth (Aug. 2023 Poll)
• Fewer than 19 percent of Missouri voters support allowing public elementary schools to discuss sexual orientation or gender identity issues. Meanwhile, at least 51 percent of voters support allowing such discussion in high schools (Aug. 2023 Poll)

Polling Summary on LGBTQ+ Issues

• 55% of Missouri voters believe charter schools should be allowed to operate in their local district (February 2025 Poll).
• 56% of Missouri voters believe charter schools should be allowed to operate across the state.
• 23% of Missouri voters correctly identify Missouri charter schools as public schools.

Polling Summary on Charter Schools

• 59% of Missouri voters support allowing students to enroll in public schools outside of the district where they live.
• 83% of Missouri voters believe transferring students or their guardians should be responsible for transportation to and from nonresident districts.
• 39% of Missouri voters support allowing school districts to opt out of having students transfer into their districts. 43% oppose.

Polling Summary on Open Enrollment

• Fewer than 38% of voters support schools being allowed to ban books with stories about gay or lesbian youth or transgender youth
• When asked if schools should be allowed to teach Critical Race Theory, only 37% agreed.  However, when asked if schools should be allowed to teach about how racism can exist in society and its institutions, 48% agreed.
• Only 18% of voters favored public schools allowing discussion of sexual orientation issues with students in elementary schools. However, 56% of voters favored allowing such discussions in high schools.
• 18% of voters support allowing transgender student-athletes to play on sports teams that match their gender identity, rather than the gender they were assigned at birth.

Polling Summary on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

• At least 70% of voters want to prohibit students’ access to cell phones in elementary, middle, and high schools.
• Only 13% of voters believe that social media has had a positive impact on society.
• Most Missouri voters believe that a child should be at least 12 years old before being allowed to access social media.
• 71% of voters favor prohibiting the usage of artificial intelligence-generated content in political advertisements.

Polling Summary on Technology