Majority supports CDC mask mandate extension for public transportation: poll

Most people in the U.S. support the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) extending the federal mask mandate for public transportation, according to a new poll by Morning Consult-Politico.

The poll was conducted before a federal judge struck down the mask mandate on Monday.

Of those surveyed, nearly two-thirds of Americans said they support the continuation of the mandate, with 38 percent of people “strongly” supporting the CDC’s extension, and another 21 percent saying they “somewhat” support the move.

Women were more likely than men to support the extension, as were people over the age of 65. Across party lines, 84 percent of Democrats supported the extension, while only 35 percent of Republicans supported it, according to the polling.

Black people were also most likely to be in favor of the mask mandate being extended as about 70 percent of Black people surveyed responded they were in favor, compared with 56 percent of white people and 58 percent of Hispanic people.

Atheists and non-Christians were also more likely to favor the mask mandate extension when compared to Christians. Fifty-five percent of Christians support the extension, whereas nearly 80 percent of atheists do, and about 70 percent of non-Christians do.

Urban and suburban residents were also significantly more likely than rural residents to support extending the mask mandate on transportation. Of urban residents, 62 percent supported the extension, and of suburban residents, 63 percent also supported the extension, whereas just 50 percent of rural residents supported it.

The results come as a Trump-appointed federal judge in Florida on Monday struck down the CDC’s federal mask mandate, writing that the CDC had exceeded its statutory authority with the order. 

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) stopped enforcing masking requirements at airports shortly after the announcement.

The judge’s ruling has drawn backlash and criticism due to the methods which the judge used to interpret the law, known as “textualism.”

The judge used the definition of the word “sanitary” to strike down the masking requirement, citing that the definition meant to “keep something clean,” and that masks do not do this.

The Morning Consult-Politico poll was conducted between April 15 and April 17, ahead of the judge’s ruling, with a sample of 2,005 registered voters based on race, gender, ethnicity, religion, educational attainment, and political affiliation.

The responses to the Morning Consult-Politico survey have a margin of error of 2 percentage points.