Poll: Support for Keystone falls among Democrats

Support for the Keystone XL oil pipeline among Democrats across the U.S. has fallen 11 percentage points since March of last year, according to a new poll.

The Pew Research poll, released on Wednesday, found that 43 percent of Democrats back building the pipeline, compared to 54 percent in 2013.

{mosads}The majority of Americans, 59 percent, still favor construction of the oil sands pipeline project, according to Pew.

But that is down 7 percentage points from March 2013, Pew noted.

Republican support of the $5.4 billion project remains relatively unchanged with 83 percent favoring it.

The same poll also explored the public’s view of hydraulic fracturing.

It found that support of fracking for oil and natural gas has declined since last year from 48 percent to 41 percent.

Women now overwhelmingly oppose fracking, 54 percent to 31 percent in favor. In 2013, women were divided on the issue.

Similarly, support among young adults has fallen 10 percentage points from 48 percent to 38 percent.

And in the Midwest, 47 percent currently oppose more fracking, while 39 percent support it. In 2013, 55 percent of those living in the Midwest backed expanding fracking, while 32 percent opposed it.

The partisan gap remains strong with 62 percent of Republicans supporting the method, compared to 29 percent of Democrats.