(DALLAS, Texas, Dec. 1, 2021) — One out of every four registered voters identifying as either Republicans or independents in Texas say they do not plan to get vaccinated against COVID-19, according to polling conducted this fall by the Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation (TxHPF).

The poll found that 25% of registered voters identifying as Republicans and 24% identifying as independents said they did not plan to get vaccinated, compared to just 6% of Democrats. Overall, 18% of respondents said they do not plan to get vaccinated.

Significantly more Democrats (81%) are fully vaccinated than Independents (62%) or Republicans (60%).

The question of personal vaccination status was one of several related to COVID-19 to cut along partisan lines. The survey also found that Texans are highly polarized over the adoption of mask mandates, vaccine mandates and vaccine passports.

“Partisan alignment is affecting Texans’ response to this pandemic,” said Jason Villalba, Chairman and CEO of the TxHPF. “The correlation of party identification and COVID-19 response could have significant public health implications, as well as political implications. As we head into an election year, we can expect candidates to lean into their parties’ beliefs about vaccines, masks and mandates. These could be some of the most hotly debated issues of the election, in Texas and nationally.”

The survey also found differences in how racial groups are responding to the pandemic. For example, Hispanic Texans are less likely to be vaccinated against COVID-19 than other groups.  The survey found that 63% of Hispanic registered voters in Texas said they were vaccinated, compared to 73% of Black registered voters and 70% of white registered voters.

White Texans were more likely than Hispanic and Black Texans to say they will not be getting vaccinated, while Hispanics were more likely to say they are not sure about getting vaccinated.

“It’s encouraging that most Hispanic respondents in the survey said they are fully vaccinated, but there is still a need for further outreach to the Hispanic community,” Villalba said. “Our success in communicating with Hispanic Texans about the vaccine will have a direct impact on the state’s overall fight against COVID-19.”

The poll also found:

• The Baby Boomer/Silent Generation (ages 57 to 93 years) has a notably higher proportion (78%) of its members reporting that they are fully vaccinated than Generation X (63%), Millennials (62%) and, especially, Generation Z (56%).

• There is a strong relationship between a person’s educational attainment and the probability that they are fully vaccinated.  While 79% of Texans with a four-year college degree or postgraduate degree are fully vaccinated, only 56% of those whose highest level of educational attainment is a high school degree or less are fully vaccinated.

“Some of the same predictors of electoral outcomes are also predictors of how Texans feel about COVID,” said TxHPF Director of Research and Analytics Mark P. Jones of Rice University. “Politics is clearly influencing the decisions Texans make about COVID.”

For the survey, 1,402 respondents were interviewed online between October 14 and 27, with a margin of error of +/- 2.6%. (The survey contained an oversample of Hispanic registered voters, with a total of 616 Texas Hispanics surveyed).

###

About the Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation The Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation operates as a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, dedicated and committed to analyzing and exploring the political, economic, social, demographic, and familial attitudes and behaviors of Texas Hispanics. The Foundation conducts surveys, polls, research, data collection and analysis concerning the Hispanic population in Texas. You can find more information about the Foundation at www.TxHPF.org.

Download the Report