JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A new poll from the University of North Florida shows nearly two-thirds of Floridians surveyed oppose removing childhood vaccine mandates.
These results come as state leaders are working to drop all school vaccine requirements for children in Florida.
In that poll from the public opinion research lab at UNF, likely voters were asked if they support or oppose the state of Florida removing all childhood vaccination mandates.
Of the 728 likely Florida voters polled, about half, 48%, said they strongly oppose it.
Another 14% somewhat oppose it, and only 34% were supportive of it.
“Of our likely voters, 63% combined opposition,” Dr. Michael Binder, UNF PORL faculty director and professor of political science, said.
Binder said the numbers show a resistance to the change, even among Florida’s republicans who have often opposed government health mandates.
“I think it says that maybe the parts of the republican party that are more supportive of this are not necessarily reflective of the rest of Florida,” Binder said. “While they have small majorities amongst republicans there are huge oppositions not only amongst democrats, but NPA’s are also opposed to this as well.”
The poll also found that parents were slightly more supportive than other groups.
“The one group that is interesting in this are parents,” Binder said. “They are, I guess, the least opposed if you will . 46% support, and 53% oppose, but even so, they are opposed to this overall.”
The state has not finalized any policy changes, but Action News Jax will continue to follow this as we learn more about the plan to remove vaccine mandates.
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