Q-poll: Floridians support raising the minimum wage, disagree on exact numbers

A new survey from Quinnipiac University shows Floridians overwhelmingly support raising the state’s minimum wage from its current floor of $8.46 per hour.

A proposed constitutional amendment would do just that. The measure, backed by a group called Florida For A Fair Wage, would push the state’s minimum wage to $10 per hour in 2021. The minimum wage would then go up by $1 per hour each year until it hit $15 an hour in 2026.

But according to Quinnipiac’s numbers, Florida residents aren’t so sure about pushing the minimum wage quite that high.

When asked whether they’d back a minimum raise hike, 76 percent of respondents indicated they would do so. Just 20 percent say they were opposed.

Even among Republicans, 57 percent said they would support a hike. That number among Democrats was 95 percent.

And when specifically asked where the state minimum wage should sit, an even higher portion indicated they think the number should be raised from $8.46 per hour.

When tasked with picking an exact range of where the number should sit, 88 percent of respondents were in favor of some type of increase.

But a plurality, 43 percent, said it should be increased to less than $15 per hour. Another 36 percent agreed at setting it right at $15 per hour, while 9 percent said the minimum wage should be increased above $15 per hour.

That means only 45 percent of respondents backed pushing the minimum wage to $15 an hour or higher.

Just 9 percent responded that there should be no increase. The remaining 3 percent were unsure.

Of the plurality that back a raise in the minimum wage to less than $15 per hour, it’s unclear how many would support the proposed constitutional amendment. Given that they are in favor of some type of raise, backers will likely attempt to convince them to get on board to the proposal in front of them.

Backers of the measure, including attorney John Morgan, are attempting to have it placed on the 2020 ballot. It would need 60 percent approval to secure passage.

The Quinnipiac poll ran from June 12 to Jun 17 and contains a sample of 1,279 self-identified registered voters. The margin of error is 3.3 percentage points.

It’s worth noting that the amendment would eventually send the state’s minimum wage above $15 per hour. After the minimum wage hits that number in 2026, it would rise in subsequent years according to levels of inflation.

Quinnipiac’s numbers contrast with a recent St. Pete Polls survey, which showed more than 63 percent of voters backing a proposed bump to $15 an hour.

The state’s current minimum wage sits above the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour. That’s thanks to a 2004 amendment which set it above the federal level. That number rises annually with inflation.

In March, the Morgan-backed amendment qualified for Supreme Court review after supporters submitted the necessary amount of signatures to trigger a review. The Court announced Tuesday it was skipping the oral argument phase of the review, as it did not receive any briefs on the wording issue