Poll: Majority of Floridians Believe State Should Require Masks in Public

The majority of Floridians believe that people should be required to wear masks in public statewide, a Quinnipiac Poll released Thursday revealed.

The survey, conducted July 16-20, among 924 self-identified registered voters throughout the state of Florida, asked respondents, “At this time, do you think people in Florida should be required to wear face masks in public, or not?”

Over three-fourths, or 79 percent, said people should be required to wear masks in public. Twenty percent said they should not be required at this time. Support for a public mask mandate is highest among self-identified Democrats, with 95 percent backing the idea. Independents followed with 79 percent, and Republicans followed with 60 percent supporting the call.

Notably, support for a public mask requirement is highest among those 18-34 years old (85 percent), followed by 65+ (83 percent), 35-49 (76 percent), and 50-64 (74 percent).

Respondents were also asked, “Do you believe that masks or face coverings are effective in slowing the spread of the coronavirus, or not?”

Most, or 81 percent, said yes, and 16 percent said no.

Sixty-one percent of those surveyed expressed the belief that Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) reopened the economy “too quickly,” but 31 percent believe he did it “at about the right pace.”

Voters remained split on if the governor should issue another stay-at-home order to contain the spread of the virus. Forty-nine percent supported the idea, but 48 percent said no.

Three-fourths of voters remain either very or somewhat concerned over hospital capacity as the state continues to see a surge in novel coronavirus cases. Hospital bed availability stood at over 21 percent statewide as of Thursday morning.

The Quinnipiac Poll’s margin of error is +/- 3.2 percent. Thirty-four percent of respondents were self-identified Democrats, followed by independents (33 percent), and Republicans (28 percent).

Florida reported 10,249 new cases of the Chinese coronavirus on Thursday, bringing the state’s total to 389,868. The state’s mortality rate stands at 1.4 percent.