Keller @ Large: Middle Class Message Is Clear In WBZ-TV-UMass Amherst Poll
BOSTON (CBS) - In the new WBZ-TV-UMass Amherst poll, likely middle-class voters preferred Charlie Baker over Martha Coakley by four points, 46-to-42 percent.
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They favored repeal of the law that allows automatic increases in the gas tax without a legislative vote by 12 points, 46-to-34 percent.
They opposed expansion of the bottle deposit law by 17 points, 53-to-36 percent.
They opposed repeal of the casino law, 51-to-40 percent.
And by a 40-point margin they supported giving more workers access to earned sick time.
If any of this surprises you, maybe it's because we don't spend as much time as we should focusing on what it's like to live in Massachusetts on a middle-class income.
The median household income here is almost $67,000, but good luck trying to live the American dream and raise a family on that.
We rank at or near the top in the cost of housing, health-care and energy. Keeping a car on the road and keeping food in the fridge are no small matter.
And then there is the never-ending parade of taxes, fines and fees, which almost never go down even when you vote for them to be cut.
When the WBZ-UMass Amherst pollsters weeded out the unlikely voters from the poll respondents, they found that it's the middle-class voter who is more likely to show up in November.
And I think their message was pretty clear and consistent: they want to put the brakes on taxes, contain container-return costs, create casino jobs, and push reluctant employers to give sick time.
And by a narrow margin, so far, they're seeing Baker as more of an ally in all this than Coakley.
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That could change.
But I bet these frustrated, anxious voters will in the end reward the candidate who proves they get it, and will keep the middle-class in mind when they start wielding power.
Listen to Jon's commentary:
You can listen to Keller At Large on WBZ News Radio every weekday at 7:55 a.m. You can also watch Jon on WBZ-TV News.
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