---
"title": "Lower-Income Republicans Say Government Does Too Little for Poor People"
"description": "Mitt Romney’s statement that he is focused solely on the problems of middle class Americans, not the poor, may not sit well with lower-income voters within his own party. Roughly a quarter of Republican and Republican-leaning registered voters have annual family incomes under $30,000, and most of them say that the government does not do […]"
"date": "2012-02-02"
"authors":
  -
    "name": "Pew Research Center"
"url": "https://alpha.pewresearch.org/pewresearch-org/politics/2012/02/02/lower-income-republicans-say-government-does-too-little-for-poor-people/"
"categories":
  - "Economic Inequality"
  - "Economic Policy"
  - "Federal Government"
  - "Personal Finances"
---

# Lower-Income Republicans Say Government Does Too Little for Poor People

[![](https://alpha.pewresearch.org/pewresearch-org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2012/02/2-2-12-1.png){.alignright width=280}](https://alpha.pewresearch.org/pewresearch-org/politics/2012/02/02/lower-income-republicans-say-government-does-too-little-for-poor-people/2-2-12-1/)

Mitt Romney’s statement that he is focused solely on the problems of middle class Americans, not the poor, may not sit well with lower-income voters within his own party. Roughly a quarter of Republican and Republican-leaning registered voters have annual family incomes under $30,000, and most of them say that the government does not do enough for poor people in this country.

In a Pew Research Center survey conducted in early October, 57% of lower-income Republican and Republican-leaning voters said the government does too little for poor people. Just 18% said it does too much.

[![](https://alpha.pewresearch.org/pewresearch-org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2012/02/2-2-12-2.png){.alignright width=280}](https://alpha.pewresearch.org/pewresearch-org/politics/2012/02/02/lower-income-republicans-say-government-does-too-little-for-poor-people/2-2-12-2/)

By contrast, higher-income Republicans took the opposite view; by roughly two-to-one (44% to 21%) Republicans with incomes of $75,000 or more said the government does too much, not too little, for poor people.

This is not to say that lower-income Republicans have a better view of the federal government generally. They are just as distrustful of government and angry at government these days as are higher-income Republicans. But in a December 2011 poll, lower-income Republicans expressed a decidedly different view about the fairness of the economic system than did those with higher incomes. Republicans and GOP leaners with family incomes of less than $30,000 were much more likely than those with incomes of $75,000 or more to say the economic system unfairly favors the wealthy, that Wall Street does more harm than good, and that a few rich people and corporations have too much power.

While they differ from higher-income Republicans, lower-income Republicans also differ from Democrats on many of these issues. For example, in October, 72% of Democratic and Democratic-leaning registered voters said the government doesn’t do enough for poor people, compared with the slimmer 57% majority of lower-income Republicans.