No surprise here: Texans split on governor ending COVID mask mandate, poll shows
Texans are split on their support of Gov. Greg Abbott ending the state’s mask mandate, and to no surprise, approval may align with their political affiliation.
According to a new poll by Progress Texas and Public Policy Polling, the public opinion on repeal of the mask mandate shows a split of 48% supporting it and 48% opposed to it. The other 4% were undecided.
The poll was released Wednesday — the day the mask mandate ended and businesses in the state were allowed to reopen at 100% capacity.
Some companies have opted to keep their COVID-19 policies in effect. The City of Austin also decided to keep the former mask rules, it announced Tuesday, prompting state Attorney General Ken Paxton to sue the city for defying the mandate.
Only 39% of Austin residents supported ending the mask mandate, according to the Progress Texas poll. Only 31% supported ending the mandate in San Antonio, compared to 45% in Houston and 48% support in Dallas.
There was much larger support in the smaller cities in Texas. Not including the four most populous cities in the state, 59% of Texans were in favor of Abbot ending the mask mandate.
How you voted in the 2020 presidential election may also reflect on your opinion. The poll found 82% of people who voted for former President Donald Trump supported the mandate being repealed. Just 11% of the people who voted for President Joe Biden supported ending the mask mandate, according to the poll.
“Medical experts agree that the mask mandates should be kept in place a bit longer,” said Ed Espinoza, executive director at Progress Texas. “It’s unfortunate this policy has been politicized to the point that Republican lawmakers are no longer concerned about the science and more concerned about their agendas.”
There were also racial disparities in the poll. While 57% of white people were in favor of the repeal, support from Latino, Asian and Black individuals varied between 33 and 37%.
There were 997 people polled throughout the state and there is a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3 percentage points.
This story was originally published March 11, 2021 at 12:42 PM with the headline "No surprise here: Texans split on governor ending COVID mask mandate, poll shows."