Views about government aid to the poor among whites by state (2014) Switch to: State among whites by views about government aid to the poor

% of whites who say government aid to the poor…

StateDoes more harm than goodDoes more good than harmNeither/both equallyDon't knowSample size
Alabama64%31%5%1%346
Alaska47%47%5%1%226
Arizona52%41%4%3%463
Arkansas55%40%2%3%229
California42%53%3%2%2,098
Colorado46%49%3%2%383
Connecticut46%48%4%1%286
Delaware49%47%3%2%217
District of Columbia13%84%2%1%124
Florida50%45%3%2%1,311
Georgia56%37%5%2%576
Hawaii40%57%2%1%141
Idaho50%43%4%2%280
Illinois47%48%3%2%975
Indiana60%35%5%1%532
Iowa46%50%4%1%304
Kansas51%42%6%1%255
Kentucky51%40%7%3%362
Louisiana60%33%4%3%289
Maine42%52%4%3%281
Maryland47%49%3%1%379
Massachusetts38%57%3%2%559
Michigan48%47%4%1%755
Minnesota47%48%4%1%483
Mississippi58%37%3%2%187
Missouri51%44%4%2%516
Montana56%41%< 1%2%278
Nebraska59%39%2%1%253
Nevada49%45%4%1%200
New Hampshire40%54%3%3%275
New Jersey45%49%3%3%605
New Mexico46%46%2%6%168
New York41%54%4%2%1,319
North Carolina50%45%4%1%712
North Dakota55%40%4%2%307
Ohio51%44%3%2%913
Oklahoma53%41%2%3%277
Oregon39%55%6%1%338
Pennsylvania51%43%4%2%1,124
Rhode Island41%53%2%5%258
South Carolina52%40%5%3%341
South Dakota56%40%2%1%268
Tennessee53%40%5%2%526
Texas55%39%3%3%1,379
Utah55%42%2%1%274
Vermont34%61%3%2%293
Virginia58%36%4%2%632
Washington41%55%3%1%542
West Virginia48%45%6%1%272
Wisconsin53%43%2%2%512
Wyoming63%30%5%2%277
Sample sizes and margins of error vary from subgroup to subgroup, from year to year and from state to state. You can see the sample size for the estimates in this chart on rollover or in the last column of the table. And visit this table to see approximate margins of error for a group of a given size. Readers should always bear in mind the approximate margin of error for the group they are examining when making comparisons with other groups or assessing the significance of trends over time. For full question wording, see the survey questionnaire.

Learn More: Does more harm than good, Does more good than harm