WESA-Campos Survey: Pittsburgh’s Priorities
Campos and 90.5 WESA, Pittsburgh’s NPR News Station, are partnering on a series of short opinion surveys of adults in the Pittsburgh region to better understand their opinions on a range of timely topics. This joint research and reporting project will ensure WESA can tap into the opinions of people in Pittsburgh on a regular basis and use the corresponding results to complement its reporting. (For more information, or to sign up to participate, click here.)
In the first round of the WESA/Campos Pulse Survey, which took place before the May 2023 primary election, we focused on residents’ priorities for the leadership of the Pittsburgh metro area.
Below are Campos’s top findings from the survey. WESA’s reporting on the survey results can also be read here.
Key Findings
In aggregate, area residents think the leadership of the Pittsburgh metro area should be most focused on crime & safety, infrastructure, and housing & homelessness (in that order).
The same three issues, in the same order (crime/safety, infrastructure, and housing/homelessness), are the top priorities among both Democrats and independents. Among Republicans, the first two priorities are the same, but growing the region’s economy is the #3 priority, while housing policy & homelessness is tied for #4 with education & workforce development.
Compared to those who live in suburban or rural areas, those who live in an urban area or in the City of Pittsburgh are less likely to feel crime prevention & public safety should be a leadership priority, and more likely to consider housing policy & homelessness a high priority.
Priorities for improving public safety differ dramatically by political party and residence location.
Respondents in aggregate say the following should be the top priorities for leadership when it comes to improving public safety (in this order): “Increase police presence in crime hotspots,” “Hire more non-police first-responders,” “Provide more resources for unmet needs,” and “Increase police engagement with community leaders to better identify needs.”
However, opinions vary widely based on political affiliation and residence location.
Democrats and those who live in the City of Pittsburgh generally say the top priorities should be hiring more non-police first responders, providing more resources for unmet needs, and creating more job training and economic opportunities.
Republicans and those who live outside of the City of Pittsburgh (especially those outside of Allegheny County) place relatively more emphasis on increasing police presence in crime hotspots, hiring more police, and investing in better police training & equipment.
Increasing police engagement with community leaders is one of the few priorities all parties seem to agree on.
Residents generally think the most important things leadership should focus on to improve the economy are investing in infrastructure and public education / vocational training.
After infrastructure and educational investments, residents’ next two priorities for improving the economy are attracting more tech companies & service industry businesses to the region, and nurturing start-ups and small businesses (which about tied with each other) .
That said, opinions on the best means of improving the economy do substantially by political party.
Republicans’ top priorities for improving the economy are reducing regulatory barriers to business growth, attracting more tech & service businesses, attracting more manufacturing & heavy industry, and investing in infrastructure improvements.
Democrats’ top priorities are comparable to respondents’ overall, except that for Democrats, investing in green energy/renewables is equally as important as attracting more tech & service businesses and nurturing start-ups/small businesses.
When it comes to improving the environment, residents’ top priorities for leadership are cleaning up polluted areas, expanding/improving public transit, and better regulating industrial emissions (in that order).
Among Democrats, the first three priorities above are approximately tied for first place.
Among Republicans, cleaning polluted lands and waterways is the clear #1 priority, and enhancing & expanding county parks and green spaces is the #2 priority, while better regulating industrial air & water emissions is only the fifth priority (behind “Expand and improve public transit network” and “Expand recycling and reuse efforts”).
Survey Methodology
Fielding dates: April 25-28, 2023
Survey length: 5-8 minutes
Sample: 402 adults (age 18+) in the Pittsburgh region
Responses were solicited from the proprietary Campos Research Panel (10,000+ members in the Greater Pittsburgh area). Respondents were offered a chance to win one of five $50 gift cards to incentivize participation.
About 78% of the respondents reside in Allegheny County, and about 22% reside in the adjacent 5 counties (Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Washington, Westmoreland).
The sample was managed to be approximately representative of the 6-county region by age, gender, and race/ethnicity.
Screening Criteria:
Age is 18 or older
Resides in Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Washington, or Westmoreland counties
About the WESA/Campos Pulse Survey: https://www.campos.com/wesa-campos-pulse
