"Simon Poll, Fall 2008; Conducted Sept. 23-Oct. 17, 2008. ",
Coverage: 800 registered votes across Illinois,
Copyright: Paul Simon Public Policy Institute at SIU,
,
Variable,Label 
id,respondent id
time,time of interview in minutes
intid,"What is your Interviewer ID number? IF THIS IS A TEST ENTER 00 PRESS ""ENTER"" TO CONTINUE."
area,Region
rsphone,What is the phone number that you're calling? Include area code. ENTER ALL 000 IF THIS IS A TEST
acode,Area code
zip,What is your zip code? ENTER 69999 FOR DON'T KNOW / REFUSALS
ringer,INTERVIEWER- WHAT HAPPENED WITH THIS CALL? 0. THIS IS ONLY A TEST ** CRUCIAL 1. PERSON ANSWERS
intro1,"Hi, this is [INTERVIEWER'S NAME], calling from the University of Illinois Survey Research Office in Springfield. We are"
intro2,"Hi, this is [INTERVIEWER'S NAME], calling from the University of Illinois Survey Research Office in Springfield. We are"
srvyinfo,"Before we begin, I'd like you to know that the responses you give are confidential.  Your name is never connected to you"
gender,CODE RESPONDENT'S GENDER WITHOUT ASKING THE RESPONDENT 1. MALE 2. FEMALE 9. DON'T KNOW / CAN'T TELL RIGHT NOW
rwdirusa,"First, we'd like to know -- generally speaking, do you think things in our country are going in the right direction, or"
rwdiril,"And what about the direction of the State of Illinois? Generally speaking, are things in Illinois going in the right dir"
rwdirlocal,"And how are things going in your area of the state? In general, are things in your area going in the right direction, or"
qlife,"Regardless of what you think about the direction your part of the state is going, tell us what you think about the overa"
ccintro,"Next, we'd like to know what you think about some public policy questions that are being talked about in Illinois. NOTE:"
recall,Recall
order1,Recall / Con-Con order
concon,ConCon opinion
order2,ConCon response altern order
rcc1,Some people are talking about amending the constitution to allow recall elections for holders of statewide elected offic
rcc1ccp,There will be a question on the ballot this November asking voters whether there should be a convention in 2009 to rewri
rcc1ccq,Which is closer to the way you feel: 1. that a constitutional convention is necessary because our state's political lead
rcc2,Some people are talking about amending the constitution to allow recall elections for holders of statewide elected offic
rcc2ccp,There will be a question on the ballot this November asking voters whether there should be a convention in 2009 to rewri
rcc2ccq,Which is closer to the way you feel: 1. that there already are ways to address important problems. A constitutional conv
ccr1,There will be a question on the ballot this November asking voters whether there should be a convention in 2009 to rewri
ccr1ccq,Which is closer to the way you feel: 1. that a constitutional convention is necessary because our state's political lead
ccr1r,Some people are talking about amending the constitution to allow recall elections for holders of statewide elected offic
ccr2,There will be a question on the ballot this November asking voters whether there should be a convention in 2009 to rewri
ccr2ccq,Which is closer to the way you feel: 1. that there already are ways to address important problems. A constitutional conv
ccr2r,Some people are talking about amending the constitution to allow recall elections for holders of statewide elected offic
tax_fed_val,"Now here are a few questions about government taxes and services. First, when it comes to the federal government in Wash"
tax_il_val,And what about the value of services you get for the tax dollars you pay to the state of Illinois? Would you say you get
tax_fairshr,"Next, what do you think about state government spending in your area of the state? In terms of its share of state spendi"
qlintro,Now we'd like to know what you think of various aspects of the quality of life in your area. For each feature that I rea
qual_air,"First / next / the next one is: The quality of the environment in your area, such as clean air and water. READ FIRST COU"
qual_infra,"First / next / the next one is: The quality of infrastructure in your area, such as roads and bridges. READ FIRST COUPLE"
qual_cops,"First / next / the next one is: The quality of public safety in your area -- for example, police and fire protection. RE"
qual_K12,First / next / the next one is: The quality of public education in your area -- from kindergarten through high school. R
econ_local,"First / next / the next one is: The performance of the local economy in your area. READ FIRST COUPLE TIMES, THEN AS NEED"
qual_parks,First / next / the next one is: The quality of parks and recreational opportunities in your area. READ FIRST COUPLE TIME
concon_info,We talked earlier about the possibility of a convention being called next year to revise the Illinois state constitution
ilbudg_st,The state government has been working to put together a budget to meet the needs of Illinois citizens. Based on what you
ilbudg_gdjob,collapse of ilbudg_gdjob1 and ilbudg_gdjob2
ilbudg_prjob,collapse of ilbudg_prjob1 and ilbudg_prjob2
ilbudg_gdjob1,"Who, if anyone, would you say has been doing a really good job in terms of putting together a state budget?  Anyone else"
ilbudg_prjob1,"And who, if anyone, would you say has been doing a really poor job in putting together a state budget?  Anyone else? 0."
ilbudg_prjob2,"Who, if anyone, would you say has been doing a really poor job in terms of putting together a state budget?  Anyone else"
ilbudg_gdjob2,"And who, if anyone, would you say has been doing a really good job in putting together a state budget?  Anyone else? 0."
ilbudg_intro,"Now I'm going to read you a short list of people and institutions - and for each, I'd like you to rate the job they have"
ilbudg_gov,"First, what about Governor Rod Blagojevich? How would you rate the job he has been doing in putting together a state bud"
ilbudg_leg,What about the state legislature in general? How would you rate the job it has been doing in putting together a state bu
Ilbudg_senpres,"What about the President of the Illinois Senate, Emil Jones? IF NEEDED: How would you rate the job he has been doing in"
Ilbudg_horspk,"And, what about the Speaker of the Illinois House, Michael Madigan? IF NEEDED: How would you rate the job he has been do"
stfin_intro,Most leaders in the capitol believe that Illinois does not have the financial resources to address all the state's needs
stfin_total,Which agree with about state finances
stfinord,Order of response altern in state finance question
stfin1,Some say that this is because the state does not take in enough money to pay for everything it should do for its citizen
stfin2,"Some say that the state takes in plenty of money, and that the lack of resources is due to too much spending on unnecess"
cuts_intro,There have been a number of proposals to address the state's budget problems by making cuts in state programs and servic
cuts_K12,Do you favor or oppose cuts in state spending on: kindergarten through high school education? 1. FAVOR CUTS 2. OPPOSE CU
cuts_he,Do you favor or oppose cuts in state spending on: state universities? 1. FAVOR CUTS 2. OPPOSE CUTS
cuts_cops,"Do you favor or oppose cuts in state spending on: public safety, such as state police and prisons? 1. FAVOR CUTS 2. OPPO"
cuts_parks,"Do you favor or oppose cuts in state spending on: natural resources, state parks and the environment? 1. FAVOR CUTS 2. O"
cuts_poor,Do you favor or oppose cuts in state spending on: programs for the needy? 1. FAVOR CUTS 2. OPPOSE CUTS
pen_cuts,Do you favor or oppose cuts in state spending on: state workers' retirement? 1. FAVOR CUTS 2. OPPOSE CUTS
cuts_comment,Is there any other area of state spending in which you would support cuts? IF YES: Could you tell which area?  Any other
tax_intro,There have been a number of proposals to address the state's budget problems by finding ways to raise more money to pay
tax_hinc,First / next / the next one is: A proposal to add brackets to the state income tax structure so that higher-income resid
tax_sales,First / next / the next one is: A proposal to raise the state portion of the sales tax rate IF NEEDED:
tax_services,"First / next / the next one is: A proposal to expand the sales tax to cover services -- for example, dry cleaning, hairc"
gamble_exp,First / next / the next one is: A proposal to expand legalized gambling in Illinois IF NEEDED:
sell_il_asset,"First / next / the next one is: A proposal to sell or lease state assets, such as the lottery and the Illinois toll road"
tax_comment,Is there any other way of raising state revenues that you would support? IF YES: Could you tell me about this?  Any othe
crts_intro,"And now I'd like to ask you a few questions about judges and the Illinois courts. In Illinois, we elect judges who run a"
judic_apelect,"In Illinois, do you think judges should be elected or appointed? IF R ASKS ABOUT APPOINTMENT METHOD, SAY: There are diff"
judic_apelectfeel,"Would you say you feel strongly about this, or not so strongly? 1. STRONGLY 2. NOT SO STRONGLY 8. DON'T KNOW"
judic_campissue,"During election campaigns, do you think candidates for judge should -- or should not -- take stands on issues that they"
crts_intro2,"Now, I'm going to read you a series of proposals. Some people think that these are good ideas but others disagree. We'd"
cf_lim_judg1,The first proposal is: We should limit how much individuals can contribute to candidates who are running for judge? Woul
cf_lim_judg2,And what about: We should limit how much groups and organizations can contribute to candidates who are running for judge
cf_pub_judg1,Some have suggested a voluntary plan where judicial candidates for the Illinois Supreme Court can get taxpayer funds to
cf_pub_judg2,Read 2 statements about public financing of Supr Court races
crts4ord,Order of statement response alternatives
crts4a,"Next, I'm going to read you two statements, and I'd like to know which comes closest to your own view. (CAREFUL - ORDER"
crts4b,"Next, I'm going to read you two statements, and I'd like to know which comes closest to your own view. (CAREFUL - ORDER"
demo_intro,Now I need to ask a few questions to help us analyze the results -- and to make sure that we're talking to a group of pe
birth_yr,In what year were you born? 1. RECORD LAST 2 DIGITS OF 19-- 8. DON'T KNOW 9. NO ANSWER
hh_child,How many children under 18 are living in your household at least half of the time or consider it their primary residence
comun_type,What kind of community do you live in? Is it... 1. a big city 2. a suburb
zip2,What is your zip code? ENTER 69999 FOR DON'T KNOW / REFUSALS
county,What county do you live in? 1. COOK 2. DUPAGE 3. LAKE
education,"What is the highest grade of school or college that you completed? Is it: 1. eighth grade or less,"
employ_time,What is your current employment status? Are you. . . **YOU CAN TELL R TO STOP YOU WHEN YOU GET TO THE ONE THAT DESCRIBES
rent_own,"Do you own or rent the home in which you live now? 1. OWN (BANK OWNS IT, WE ARE PAYING) 2. RENT"
marstatus,What is your current marital status?  Are you: 1. married 2. living with someone 3. divorced or separated
party_aff08,"Generally speaking, do you consider yourself a Republican, a Democrat, an independent, or what? 1. REPUBLICAN 2. DEMOCRA"
party_repstr,"Would you consider yourself a strong Republican, or a not-so-strong Republican? 1. STRONG 2. NOT SO STRONG"
party_demstr,"Would you consider yourself a strong Democrat, or a not-so-strong Democrat? 1. STRONG 2. NOT SO STRONG"
party_indystr,Do you consider yourself closer to the Democratic Party or the Republican Party? 1. CLOSER TO DEMOCRATIC PARTY 2. CLOSER
party_aff,"Collapse of party_repstr, party_demstr, and party_indystr. Variable constructed to more closely match comparable variable in subsequent polls."
rac_eth,"Do you generally consider yourself... 1. White 2. African American 3. Hispanic, Latino or Mexican"
hh_inc,"Also, to make sure that we get a good representation of the state as a whole, I'm going to list some broad income catego"
numphones,"**Not** including cell phone numbers, how many different telephone numbers does your household have that are used to tal"
havecell,"And, do any adults in your household have a cell phone number -- by adults I mean those who are at least 18 years old?"
gender2,"***** ASK IF NECESSARY ****** My supervisor makes us ask, what is your gender? 1. MALE 2. FEMALE"
cbtime,When is a good time to call back to speak with a registered voter in your household? TAKE A NOTE ON YOUR CALLING SHEET.
nrv,"Sorry to have bothered you. For this study, we need to speak with someone who is a registered voter. 1. CONTINUE."
thanks,Thank you for your time. Have a good (day/evening). PRESS 1 TO CONTINUE
sorry,Sorry to have bothered you. PRESS 1 TO CONTINUE.
thanksc,Thank you very much for your time and the information that you have provided. Have a good (day/evening). PRESS 1 TO CONT
results,WHAT HAPPENED WITH THIS CALL? 1. INTERVIEW COMPLETE 2. PARTIAL COMPLETE 3. REFUSAL
spanish,Was the language Spanish? 1. YES 2. NO 8. DON'T KNOW
date1,date of interview
regwgt,Region - Oct 9 wgt statewide
gendwgt,Gender - Oct 9 wgt statewide
rxgwgt,Reg x Gender statewide wgt Oct 9