Slicing the Stuy Pie Chart: A Look into Students’ Political Views

The Spectator distributed a political typology survey to better understand the Stuyvesant student body’s political alignment and beliefs on key topics such as race, climate change, welfare, and foreign aid. A total of 512 students responded: 141 seniors (27.5 percent), 130 juniors (25.4 percent), 122 sophomores (23.8 percent), and 199 freshmen (23.2 percent)—or roughly 16 percent of the entire student body. Here are their political stances:

With which mainstream American political party do your views most closely align? If you were to register as a member of a party, with which party would you register?

To what extent should race play a role in college admissions?

Despite 75 percent of students identifying with the Democratic Party, the overwhelming majority of respondents believe that race should not be a deciding factor in college admissions, whether this means that it should not be considered at all or that it should be considered as one factor among many others. Such statistics may be a result of the fact that the Stuyvesant student body is 74 percent Asian; with the recent Harvard lawsuit and traditional images of the “model minority,” Asian students may believe they do not have the advantages that other minorities receive due to affirmative action and that the college admissions process holds them to a higher standard.

In what situation should someone be able to get an abortion?

The bulk of the students who participated in the survey (80 percent) believe that abortion should be allowed within the bounds of Roe v. Wade, which ensured an individual’s right to a safe abortion by a medical professional. There are a number of participants, however, who support both ends of the spectrum; some believe that all women should have the right to obtain an abortion, while others are entirely against it. These responses correlate with the statistic that 80 percent of participants would register as a member of the Democratic Party, which generally supports Roe v. Wade.

Choices:

1. Abortion should be allowed within the bounds of Roe v. Wade, which ensures an individual’s right to a safe abortion by a medical professional.

2. Abortion should not be allowed, unless there is a direct danger to the life of the mom.

3. Abortion should not be allowed under any circumstances.

To what extent should the government impose restrictions on firearm purchases?

In line with the generally left-leaning student body, over 70 percent of respondents were in favor of subjecting firearm purchasers to background checks and preventing those with histories of mental illness or domestic abuse from buying these weapons. The number of responses on both extremes are almost identical: about 10 percent of students believe that civilians should never be allowed to purchase firearms, while just over 10 percent state that all non-assault weapons should be available for purchase to the general public. There are only 26 students who believe that no restrictions should be imposed.

Choices:

1. Everybody should be subject to background checks for purchasing firearms, and people with a history of mental illness or domestic violence should not be allowed to purchase guns.

2. People should never be allowed to buy guns under any circumstances.

3. People should be able to freely buy any firearm that is not an assault weapon.

4. Restrictions should not be imposed.

5. Unsure / Not specified.

What should the U.S. do about climate change?

Given the largely liberal stance in Stuyvesant, it’s unsurprising to see that an overwhelming majority (83 percent) voted to fund renewables as well as actively limit nuclear waste and greenhouse gases. A minority of students support either negative or positive incentives, but not both. Total laissez-faire policy constitutes a very small portion of votes (2.73 percent), and outright climate change denial was all but nonexistent (1.56 percent). Before sending out the survey, The Spectator debated including an option for students in favor of nuclear energy and renewables and against greenhouse gases, but ultimately decided not to in the interest of limiting convolution. However, this may have been a mistake—and a fair number of students (nearly four percent) felt so strongly about the importance of nuclear energy that they wrote in answers in support of it. Most of these answers supported the use of nuclear energy alongside renewables, but three focused solely on the former.

Choices:

1. Fund renewables and actively limit greenhouse gases and nuclear waste.

2. Fund renewables but do not actively limit greenhouse gases and nuclear waste.

3. Do not fund renewables but actively limit greenhouse gases and nuclear waste.

4. Let the market run its course, as the invisible hand of the market is more efficient than central planning.

5. Nothing. Climate change is the planet's natural reaction, and we should adapt to it within existing structures.

6. Other

Should the government fund programs for birth control, and if so, how?

Stuyvesant students took a mostly progressive stand on publicly subsidized contraception, supporting its widespread availability; only four and a half percent of students do not support some form of government-subsidized availability. One such student felt implored to clarify that he or she did not see it as a moral issue but as a spending issue. Contraception provision was also one of the issues where students felt most confident and most comfortable selecting a provided category; only three students wrote in answers. One claimed lack of sufficient knowledge, another clarified support for contraceptive provision but not for abortion, and the last believes that the government should not be using “taxpayer dollars to give preferential treatment to any clinic.”

Choices:

1. Yes, it should be available in schools and licensed clinics.

2. It should be available in licensed clinics to anyone (e.g., Planned Parenthood)

3. It should only be available in licensed clinics to those over 18

4. The government should not fund any programs to provide birth control

5. Other / Unsure

Which policy regarding undocumented immigrants best aligns with your beliefs?

Despite our Democratic-majority student body, the split of opinions regarding undocumented immigrants is highly varied. While the most popular option (“Only undocumented immigrants without a criminal record should be given a path to citizenship, and those with one should be deported”) was the most in line with standard moderate Democratic beliefs, it received just over one-third of the total votes, followed closely by the far-leftist support of completely halting deportations until U.S. Immigration Laws have been reformed. In addition, a select number of students wrote in that all illegal immigrants should be deported.

Choices:

1. All undocumented immigrants should be given a path to citizenship, and all deportations should be halted until the USCIS has been reformed.

2. All undocumented immigrants should be given a path to citizenship, with limited deportations continued.

3. Only undocumented immigrants without a criminal record should be given a path to citizenship.

4. Only undocumented immigrants protected under DACA should be given a path to citizenship.

5. Unsure / Other

Which of the following healthcare policies best aligns with your beliefs?

Just under 50 percent of students answered: “The federal government should make Medicare, which currently only covers senior citizens, available to all citizens, allowing people to buy into it if they wish but continuing to let private insurance exist.” This moderate belief corresponds with the response that over 75 percent of students identify most strongly with the Democratic Party. Of the remaining students, the most popular opinion was: “The federal government should implement Medicare for All, making Medicare the only insurance available for most types of care and eliminating most private insurance.”

However, there are students on the opposite end of the spectrum. Despite the fact that “no government-provided health care” was not a provided option, a few students wrote in responses supporting this idea.

Choices:

1. The federal government should make Medicare available, but not required, for all citizens.

2. The federal government should implement Medicare-for-all, making Medicare the only insurance available for most types of care.

3. The federal government should become the primary provider of both American health insurance and health care, directly owning hospitals and employing medical personnel.

4. The federal government should keep the Affordable Care Act in place.

5. The federal government should repeal Obamacare and replace it with a viable alternative.

6. Unsure / Other

Should low level, non violent crimes like drug possession be punishable by jail time?

Just under half of the students (42.8 percent) believe that non-violent crimes should not be punishable by jail time, instead saying that offenders should be punished by a fine or by mandatory rehabilitation. Just over 30 percent answered that only repeat offenders should receive jail time, and the next most popular answer (14 percent) was that low-level crimes should not be crimes at all. The responses align with a standard Democratic perspective on low-level crimes. As over 75 percent of students identify most strongly with the Democratic Party, our results were unsurprising.

Choices:

1. No, they should be punishable by a fine or by mandatory rehabilitation.

2. Yes, but only for repeat offenders with the time of incarceration determined by the judge.

3. No, they should not be crimes at all.

4. Yes, for all offenders, with set minimums on jail time.

5. Yes, for all offenders, with no limit on jail time.

6. Other

Should the federal government mandate that all legal documents (birth certificates, passports, drivers’ licenses) have a non-binary gender option?

Around half of the students answered that all legal documents should recognize gender preferences. Of the students who disagreed, almost half of them said that while they support recognizing non-binary gender preferences, they believe that the issue should be left to the states. This statistic indicates that most students support these rights—even though it may initially seem that only half of the students do. On the other hand, 26.9 percent of respondents did not support any option that would allow for a non-binary gender option on all legal documents.

Choices:

1. Yes, it’s important to recognize gender preferences.

2. No, legal documents should reflect biological sex, not gender preferences.

3. No, this decision falls within the domain of state affairs. That said, I do think states should put a non-binary gender option on legal documents, of their own volition.

4. Other

What should government welfare spending look like?

Consistent with the Democratic-majority student body, nearly half of the respondents think that government welfare spending should be increased to create a safety net. The number of students who support the remaining options corresponded with how liberal the answer choices were. Furthermore, a number of students wrote in that while welfare should not be expanded to reach more citizens, it should be expanded in the sense of allowing for recipients to become self-sufficient.

Choices:

1. The current welfare state and its programs should be expanded to create a social safety.

2. The welfare state should continue as it currently exists.

3. Current welfare programs should be scaled back and replaced by a universal basic income program.

4. Programs like social security should continue, but all means-tested welfare programs, which provide direct aid to people in poverty, should be eliminated.

5. Unsure / Other

How should federal and state governments provide financial aid to students?

While the results show that the student body has evenly divided views on this issue, almost all students believe that the government should provide some form of financial aid to students. Slightly less than 32 percent of the students believe that the government needs to increase need-based financial aid and decrease the tuition of public universities. About 26 percent of the students believe that the federal government should increase need-based financial aid without changing tuition. However, a sizable minority of the student body thinks that tuition for public universities should be made free for low-income students or even all students, regardless of income. Another student advocated for tax benefits for colleges that offered more generous financial aid. This is in line with the statistic that 46 percent of the student body at Stuyvesant qualifies for free or reduced lunch.

Choices:

1. Need-based financial aid should be available for students in public universities.

2. Fees for public universities should be significantly lowered in addition to existing need-based financial aid.

3. Low income students should be able to attend public universities for free.

4. Public universities should be free for all students regardless of family income.

5. Other

What should federal taxation policy look like? Select all that apply.

In general, Stuyvesant students took a progressive view toward taxation, with strong support for policies like wealth taxation and massive increases of top marginal tax rates, widely associated with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D - Mass.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D - N.Y.), respectively. Though only two students took the hardline libertarian stance that there should be no taxes, a substantial minority of students—nearly 20 percent—support the flat tax, a conservative tax policy that had its most major recent proponent in Sen. Rafael Edward “Ted” Cruz (R - Texas), who included it as part of his platform when he ran for president in 2016. It also seems, however, that many students who claimed support for a flat tax did not know what a flat tax was; a flat tax is a tax with an equal rate across all incomes and is therefore in direct contradiction of a 70 percent top marginal tax rate or maintenance of any sort of bracket system. Of the 112 students who claimed support for a flat tax, 21 claimed support for a 70 percent top marginal rate as well, and an additional 18 claimed support for maintaining the current bracket system—nearly 35 percent of all flat tax supporters altogether.

Choices:

1. Income tax should take the form of a flat tax, with all loopholes closed.

2. The current bracket system should be maintained, though potentially with minor adjustments.

3. The current bracket system should be maintained, but capital gains should be taxed like income.

4. More tax brackets should be added for higher incomes, with a top marginal rate of 70 percent or more.

5. There should be a wealth tax on massive fortunes.

6. Unsure / Other

How should the U.S. government spend its budget on foreign aid?

Students were divided on the question of how the U.S. should alter its foreign aid budget, with 160 students supporting a reduction in the budget to reduce national debt by one to five percent. Almost as many students—148—wanted to increase aid-spending to third-world countries, and several picked both options, favoring an overall reduction but an increase in spending to countries with a greater need. One hundred ten students favored no change or minimal change to the current budget, and 105 took a more hawkish view, favoring reductions in spending to hostile countries that could pose a potential threat. Fourteen students indicated that they were not sufficiently educated on the topic to provide a response.

When, if ever, should the U.S. intervene in another country’s affairs?

Stuyvesant students were generally in support of the opinion that some American intervention in foreign affairs is justified. The most popular position (287 students) was that intervention on humanitarian grounds is justified. Almost as many—257—said that the U.S. government should intervene if an ally gives its permission or requests American intervention, and 39 people selected both options. An additional 91 students supported American intervention when U.S. dominance in the global sphere is threatened, and only 30 said that the American government should never intervene in the affairs of other countries. Of the strict non-interventionists, six also selected choices which directly contradicted that position. Overall, Stuyvesant students were accepting of American intervention in foreign affairs—more so than their other professed positions would indicate.

Do you friends share your political ideology?

Does your family share your political ideology?

Over half of the students share the same political ideology with their family and friends—62.5 percent and 63.9 percent, respectively. The proximity of these answers is surprising due to the generation gap and corresponding differences in ideology between students and their parents.