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RELEASE: New Poll Finds Broad, Bipartisan Support in Minnesota for Boosting Investment in Quality, Affordable Child Care
Press Release

RELEASE: New Poll Finds Broad, Bipartisan Support in Minnesota for Boosting Investment in Quality, Affordable Child Care

Building an Economy for All, Restoring Social Trust in Democracy, Early Childhood, +1 More

St. Paul, Minn. — Today, the Center for American Progress released a new report detailing the findings of a public opinion survey on the state of child care in Minnesota and voters’ priorities for improving the system. The poll was conducted by GBA Strategies and surveyed 614 registered Minnesota voters. A few key findings include:

  • 59 percent of Minnesota parents with children under 18 say that lack of access to quality, affordable child care is a serious problem.
  • 58 percent of Minnesota parents with children under age 18 say that they or an immediate family member have had their career or career prospects negatively impacted due to child care considerations.
  • 72 percent of Minnesotans support efforts by state lawmakers to increase funding for quality, affordable child care or other early childhood education programs—with 60 percent of voters saying that they would be “more likely” to vote for a candidate who supports these efforts.
  • Increasing funding for child care is not a partisan issue for Minnesota voters. Fifty-nine percent of Republicans, 65 percent of independents, and 88 percent of Democrats support additional funding.
  • 46 percent of Minnesota voters believe that the state’s governor and state legislature are best positioned to improve access to quality, affordable child care—outpacing their belief that this problem will be solved by the private sector, local government, Congress, or nonprofit organizations.

For a complete analysis of the poll results, please click here. The release of the findings comes on the one-year anniversary of the Child Care for Working Families Act, the leading piece of federal legislation to improve child care quality and affordability for working families. A new CAP analysis finds that, under the legislation, 724,000 Minnesota children would be income-eligible for child care assistance, and the median family’s weekly child care payment in Minnesota would not exceed $38.

For more information on this topic or to connect with an expert, please contact Colin Seeberger at [email protected] or 214.223.2913.