KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Sticking very much to their red inclinations, Tennessee voters in an inaugural poll conducted by the Beacon Center of Tennessee clearly prefer Donald Trump over President Joe Biden and Donald Trump over GOP challenger Ron DeSantis.
Those polled in the across-the-state survey conducted last month also think there should be more options when it comes to public and private education for children, and a strong majority thinks Education Savings Accounts should be expanded statewide.
The Beacon Center is a non-profit, non-partisan Nashville-based center that touts its dedication to free markets, individual liberties and limited government.
On Thursday it released the first of what it plans as quarterly polls checking in with Tennesseans across the state on a variety of issues, spokesman Mark Cunningham said.
At 9:30 a.m. Sunday, WBIR's "Inside Tennessee" will talk with Cunningham about the new polling effort.
The margin of error for the poll of more than 1,000 was estimated at about 2.87%, according to Beacon.
If the presidential election were held today, about 55% of 1,046 respondents quizzed said they'd go for Trump and 34% said they'd go for Biden. That left 11% who said they were undecided.
Trump and Biden are the clear leading candidates in their parties in the state, according to the poll. Among Republicans surveyed about GOP presidential candidates, Trump dominated Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis -- 61% to 12%, with former Vice President Mike Pence tallying in at 8%, according to the Beacon poll.
The poll also surveyed attitudes about education in the state and interest in Education Savings Accounts, or ESAs, composed of public monies that can be used by a parent to pay for alternatives to a public education.
According to Beacon Poll results, 77% of those questioned said they agreed that Tennesseans should have more public and private educational choices.
Also, 69% said they thought ESAs should be expanded statewide. About 17% disagreed. You might assume ESAs would be popular primarily with Republicans. The Beacon Poll, however, found that of those who identified as Democratic, 61% said they liked the idea of ESAs.
Other noteworthy responses:
*Of the 1,120 respondents, 39% said they supported the expulsions this spring of two Democratic lawmakers from the state House. But another 39% said they disapproved of the expulsions; 17% said they neither approved nor disapproved, and 6% said they weren't sure. Members Justin Pearson and Justin Jones were quickly returned to the House in April.
*Should TikTok, which has a parent company based in China, be banned? 56% of those polled said they strongly approved or somewhat approved of the idea. That notion tended to remain consistent across ethnic, economic and educational groups, results showed.
