Change Research conducted a survey of 1,025 voters across the nation on the topic of Puerto Rico’s political status. The main result – a majority of 59% in favor of statehood for Puerto Rico — is similar to other polls taken in the past.
More information means more support
As we have seen in other surveys conducted as recently September, 2020, respondents are more likely to support statehood when they have more information.
In the most recent poll, respondents were informed of the results of the 2020 plebiscite, in which 53% of Puerto Rico voters chose statehood. As Change Research analysts explained:
Voters became even more supportive of statehood when informed that “In the November 2020 election, 53% of Puerto Rican voters voted ‘Yes’ in a non-binding ballot referendum on the following question: ‘Should Puerto Rico be admitted immediately into the Union as a State?’” Support increases to 63% (from 59%), while opposition falls to 29% (from 32%)
Polls of people living in the States consistently show that the majority favors statehood for Puerto Rico.
The recent poll also noted that Puerto Rico and D.C. statehood have virtually identical levels of strong support (43% strongly support Puerto Rico statehood and 44% support D.C. statehood), but there are fewer strong negative opinions about Puerto Rican statehood: only 25% of voters strongly oppose Puerto Rico statehood, much less than the 40% that strongly opposed statehood for D.C.