Sanctuary State And Gas Tax Hike Are Bad Issues For Walz According To New Poll

Democrat Tim Walz has made turning Minnesota into a sanctuary state and raising the gas tax two key issues of his campaign. However, a new KSTP/Survey USA poll shows the voters are not ready to support Walz’s ideas.

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Minnesota voters and gubernatorial candidate Tim Walz don’t see eye-to-eye on key issues, according to new polling data.

Walz, the Democratic nominee for governor, has made turning Minnesota into a sanctuary state and raising the gas tax two key issues of his campaign. However, a new KSTP/Survey USA poll shows the voters are not ready to support Walz’s ideas.

On the issue of illegal immigration, most Minnesotans disagree with Walz’s proposal to turn Minnesota into a sanctuary state. According to the poll, 59 percent of those surveyed do not want Minnesota to become a sanctuary state for illegal immigrants.

Walz believes it is the job of the federal government to enforce immigration laws, and local law enforcement officials should be prevented from asking the immigration status of individuals. During the “Almanac” debate, Walz said it “violates the humanity of this” to have local law enforcement cooperating with immigration officials.

“States that separate those two things clearly have lower crime rates, they have better integration, and they have safer cities,” Walz claimed.

On the debate surrounding sanctuary state state policies, Minnesota voters seem to side with Republican candidate for governor Jeff Johnson. Johnson has taken a strong stance against sanctuary state policies. During the “Almanac” debate, Johnson rejected the idea of a sanctuary state, saying the issue is not a “question of humanity.”

“Tim believes we should become a sanctuary state, I do not think that is the right place for Minnesota to be,” Johnson said. “I think we are a state of laws and we are a country of laws, and we should enforce them.”

Walz also loses support on the issue of raising the gas tax. While politicians tend to shy away from committing to specific tax hikes, Walz has made raising the gas tax a primary talking point of his campaign. On his campaign website, the first bullet point in his transportation plan is to increase the gas tax to “secure a stable funding source for transit and transportation.” Walz believes this plan will resonate with voters, saying Minnesotans are “willing to pay” more in taxes.

“In Minnesota, taxpayers are willing to pay if they believe their money is being spent wisely and its being fair,” Walz said during the Almanac debate.

While Walz claims Minnesotans are okay with higher taxes, the latest polling shows Minnesotans do not want to pay more at the pump. Of the individuals surveyed, 52 percent object to a gas tax increase.

This plays well for Johnson as he has said he will not support any tax increases as governor, including an increase in the gas tax.

Overall, the poll found Walz has a 7-point lead over Johnson, 47 percent to 40 percent. The margin of error is 4.9 percent, and 10 percent of respondents were undecided. Read the full results here.

Christine Bauman