Angus Reid Global Monitor : Polls & Research

Ohio Supports Strickland on Execution Stay

February 03, 2007

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in the Buckeye state believe their governor was right to postpone three upcoming executions of death row inmates, according to a poll by the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. 60 per cent of respondents support Ted Strickland's decision to review each case before going forward.

Since 1976, 1,061 people have been put to death in the United States, including four this year. More than a third of all executions have taken place in the state of Texas. Fourteen states and the District of Columbia do not engage in capital punishment, and moratoriums on executions have been issued in Illinois and New Jersey.

On Jan. 20, Strickland—who took office on Jan. 8—postponed the executions of three death row inmates, declaring, "(Before proceeding), my staff and I will have conducted a comprehensive, thorough and searching review of the case to determine if any exercise of executive clemency is appropriate."

Ohio has executed 24 men since capital punishment was reinstated in February 1999. 48 per cent of respondents are in favour of sentencing people convicted of murder to death, while 38 per cent prefer life imprisonment with no chance of parole.

Polling Data

Ohio governor Ted Strickland has postponed three upcoming executions of death row inmates saying that he wants to review each case before going forward with execution. Do you support or oppose Strickland's decision to postpone these executions?

Support

60%

Oppose

31%

Not sure

9%

Which punishment do you prefer for people convicted of murder: the death penalty or life in prison with no chance of parole?

Death penalty

48%

Life / No parole

38%

Not sure

14%

Source: Quinnipiac University Polling Institute
Methodology: Telephone interviews to 1,305 registered Ohio voters, conducted from Jan. 23 to Jan. 28, 2006. Margin of error is 2.7 per cent.

Archive Search

Over 19,600 Polls
Search the Angus Reid Global Monitor Polls & Research archive.


Advanced Search