HARRISBURG (TNS) — Nearly two in three Pennsylvania voters surveyed said they support the state’s order requiring students and staff to wear masks in schools, according to a new Franklin & Marshall College poll.

The F&M poll also found a majority of voters approve of employers requiring workers to get the COVID-19 vaccines. But voters are split on whether businesses should require customers to show proof of vaccination.

While mask requirements in schools have emerged as a heated topic at school board meetings across the state, the F&M poll found a solid majority support teachers and students wearing masks.

The survey found 64% of voters favored the mask mandate in schools, while 35% oppose it. Support for the mask order was much higher among Democrats than Republicans. While 71% of Democrats strongly favor a mask requirement in schools, 41% of Republicans strongly oppose a mask requirement.

On the question of employers requiring vaccinations, 56% support the requirement, while 42% oppose it.

But voters surveyed were almost evenly divided on whether businesses should ask their customers to show proof of a COVID-19 vaccination, with 51% in favor of it and 49% opposed.

“The thing we tried to emphasize, you have a strong kernel of people who are strongly opposed, not just to the mask mandate, but any mitigation measures,” said Berwood Yost, director of the F&M poll.

Among those surveyed, 91% said they had received a COVID-19 vaccine. Statewide, 91% of adults have received at least one dose of a vaccine and 71.4% of those 18 and over are fully vaccinated, according to Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration.

{p class=”krtText”}“We still hear a lot of anti-vax stuff but a broad majority of people have had at least one shot,” Yost said.

{p class=”krtText”}The poll surveyed 522 registered voters between Oct. 18-24. The voters surveyed included 244 Democrats, 205 Republicans, and 73 independents. The survey has a margin of error of 5.2 percentage points.

{p class=”krtText”}©2021 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit pennlive.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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