Marshall Plan for Moms Poll: Key Findings

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carly cooperman

CARLY COOPERMAN

DATE: SEPTEMBER 24, 2021 RE: MARSHALL PLAN FOR MOMS POLL: KEY FINDINGS

Marshall Plan for Moms Poll: Key Findings A new national poll1 of likely November 2022 General Election female voters under the age of 55 finds that these women, and particularly moms, were significantly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and that there is a strong opportunity to rally Female Voters around core-parenting related issues championed by Marshall Plan for Moms.

Key findings from poll: 1) Female Voters feel the government doesn’t support Moms enough and they give the government low ratings 2) Female Voters faced significant difficulties during Covid, as their employment was heavily impacted by the pandemic 3) Substantial challenges remain for Moms generally as the nation recovers – juggling the responsibilities of work and family, suffering from Covid fatigue, followed by the high cost of childcare – and especially for Moms who want to reenter the workforce 4) Economic support for working moms and providing support for parents and families are top issues for Female Voters 5) Female Voters are motivated by policies that make it easier for Moms to work and that make motherhood more affordable, particularly paid family leave and affordable childcare 6) There is a strong opportunity to rally Female Voters to vote around core parentingrelated issues regardless of partisan identity

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Poll respondents were reached using random selection procedures and were required to pass a series of screening questions in order to ensure they are likely to vote in the November 2022 General Election.

Key Finding 1: Government Doesn’t Support Moms Enough A majority of All Female Voters (69%) do not believe, or are not sure of if, the government gives enough support to moms in general.

Chart 1. Government Support Moms Enough Generally?

Among All Female Voters

69% 54%

31% 15% Yes

No

Not sure

Notably, 50% of Female Voters rated the government only Fair or Poor before Covid, increasing to 56% during Covid.

Chart 2. Rating of Government Before Covid Among All Female Voters

Chart 3. Rating of Government During Covid Among All Female Voters

50% 30% 29%

14% Excellent

Good

56% 30% 32%

21%

Fair

24%

12% Poor

Excellent

Good

Fair

Poor

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Key Finding 2: Female Voters Faced Significant Difficulties During Covid Female Voters faced significant difficulties during Covid as their employment was heavily impacted by the pandemic.

Nearly half of Female Voters and nearly half of Moms experienced unemployment or income reduction during the pandemic, as only 54% of Female Voters and only 52% of Moms did not experience unemployment or income reduction.

Table 1. Covid Impact on Employment % All Female Voters

% Moms

Lost job

11%

10%

Been furloughed

12% 19% 18%

15% 19% 19%

54%

52%

Experience

(Note: multiple responses accepted)

Income cut Stopped working for a period Did not experience a reduction in employment or income

A plurality of All Female Voters (38%), Moms (41%), and Moms with a child under 5 (44%) say that they had to work less since the pandemic began.

Table 2. Covid Impact on Time Working % All Female Voters

% Moms

% Moms with Child Under 5

Working less

38%

41%

44%

Working in the same capacity

33%

34%

30%

Not working when the coronavirus began

19%

20%

20%

Experience

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Key Finding 3: Substantial Challenges Remain for Moms, Especially for Moms who Want to Reenter the Workforce Challenges Facing Moms As the nation recovers from the coronavirus, Moms are facing steep challenges, particularly centered around work and family responsibilities.

The biggest challenges facing moms as the country recovers from the coronavirus pandemic are juggling the responsibilities of work and family, as well as Covid fatigue, followed by the high cost of childcare.

Table 3. Challenges Facing Moms as Nation Recovers from Covid2 % All Female Voters

% Moms

Juggling the responsibilities of work with the responsibilities of family

51%

50%

Fatigue and burnout from maintaining responsibilities during the coronavirus pandemic

46%

46%

High cost of childcare

40%

38%

The lack of family-supportive workplaces and businesses not offering adequate paid family leave

37%

39%

Not enough childcare options

33% 32%

32% 35%

Challenge

Feelings of isolation and lack of socialization

2 Respondents were asked to select all that apply. Only the top answer choices are shown here.

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Challenges Facing Working Moms The biggest challenges facing moms who would like to reenter the work force or return to working the amount they were working before the pandemic center on childcare, jobs with flexible hours, and adequate pay.

Table 4. Challenges Facing Working Moms3 % All Female Voters

% Moms

Childcare is too expensive to make going back to work worth it

46%

48%

Jobs available do not accommodate flexible hours

41% 38% 34% 31% 23% 12%

41% 42% 34% 30% 24% 12%

Challenge

Jobs available don’t pay enough Jobs available do not have remote work policies Kids aren’t in school five days a week Lack of availability of jobs Not enough retraining programs

3 Respondents were asked to select all that apply.

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Key Finding 4: Economic Support for Working Moms & Support for Parents and Families are Top Issues Economic support for working moms and providing support for parents and families, key pillars of Marshall Plan for Moms, tied for third as the most important issue for Female Voters overall, behind only the economy and healthcare.

Table 5. Most Important Issues Overall4 Issue

% Important All Female Voters

The economy, jobs, taxes, and cost of living

26%

Healthcare

24% 17% 17% 16% 15% 15% 14% 13% 13% 12% 10%

Economic support for working moms Providing support for parents and families Women’s rights Improving K-12 education Cost of college tuition and student debt Immigration Fighting crime and public safety Addressing climate change Addressing the coronavirus Criminal justice reform / police reform

4 Respondents were asked to select up to three options.

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Key Finding 5: Female Voters are Motivated by Policies that Make It Easier for Moms to Work and Make Motherhood More Affordable When asked about parenting-related policies, Female Voters and Moms believe it’s particularly important for lawmakers to focus on offering paid family leave, providing affordable childcare, and children’s healthcare.

Table 6. Most Important Parent-Related Policies Facing Moms Policy

% Most Important/Very Important % Female % Moms Voters

Offering paid family leave

78%

78%

Providing affordable childcare

77%

77%

Making children’s healthcare more affordable and more accessible

77%

79%

Reopening schools fully

69%

75%

Eliminating pay inequity for women in the workforce

65%

64%

Offering retraining programs for moms

61% 59%

66% 61%

55%

63%

Expanding the child tax credit Providing direct payments to moms to assist with living expenses and childcare

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Key Finding 6: Opportunity to Rally Female Voters to Vote around Core Parenting-related Issues There is a strong opportunity to rally Female Voters around core parenting-related issues.

73% of All Female Voters, including 77% of Moms, indicate they would support a Congressional candidate who aligns with their views on care policies, like paid family leave and affordable childcare, but is a member of a different political party. Notably, significant majorities of both Liberals and Conservatives also do.

Chart 4. Likelihood of Supporting Congressoinal Candidate Aligned on Care Policies from a Different Party

Total Likely

Total Not Likely

77%

73%

19% All Female Voters

17% Moms

Chart 5. Likelihood of Supporting Congressoinal Candidate Aligned on Care Policies from a Different Party

78%

Total Likely

Total Not Likely

66% 20%

Liberals

22% Conservatives

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Further, Female Voters believe that moms across the political spectrum have similar priorities in terms of the issues that they want lawmakers to do something about. This sentiment plus the willingness to vote across party lines for a candidate aligned on care policy views makes a strong case that there is an opportunity to rally female voters around these issues.

Chart 6. Moms Sharing Priorities Across the Political Spectrum

A Great Deal / Somewhat

Not A Lot / Not At All

80%

74%

14% All Female Voters

11% Moms

Chart 7. Moms Sharing Priorities Across the Political Spectrum

A Great Deal / Somewhat

80%

Not A Lot / Not At All

78%

8% Liberals

13% Conservatives

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