Arizona voters will decide on the November ballot whether the state should raise its minimum wage from $8.05 an hour to $12 by 2020. Arizona Public Radio’s Justin Regan reports, recent polling suggests a majority of voters support the increase.
The survey conducted by the Arizona Republic, Cronkite News and the Morrison Institute for Public Policy asked 800 registered voters if they support Proposition 206. Pollsters found 60% in favor of the minimum wage measure. Fewer than 10% were undecided.
Prop 206 would gradually raise Arizona's minimum wage over the next three years.
Thom Reilly, the director of the Morrison Institute, says public support for the initiative could be a direct result of recent economic troubles in the U.S.
“People have just experienced coming through a recession and that could impact their understanding of what it may take to actually live on a wage in the state,” says Reilly.
Reilly also says he's surprised by the level of support for Prop 206 in the state, even though he thinks Arizona is becoming less conservative. A follow-up poll on the measure will be released next week.
