Executive Summary

In terms of both size and fundamental commitment to a new direction, unmarried women comprise one of the most important cohorts in deciding the outcome of the 2008 elections. However, historically this group has been underrepresented in the electorate. In 2004, nearly 20 million unmarried women did not vote: 41 percent of all unmarried women did not vote, compared to 29 percent of married women. While this is changing and improving—the number of unmarried women jumped by nearly 16 percent between 2002 and 2006—it is clear that progressives leave many votes on the table here. The question therefore, remains, to what degree will unmarried women participate in the 2008 elections? A new survey of unmarried women in key battleground states by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner addresses this question. It shows an unmarried population deeply engaged in the national conversation, intent to changing the direction of the country and, notably, committed to participating in the 2008 elections.

Key Findings

• Unmarried women are committed to change. A striking 77 percent of these women believe the country is headed on the wrong track, compared to 72 percent of American voters in the last (November 29-December 3) Democracy Corps survey. However, rather than instilling cynicism and futility, this anger aroused over the national direction sparks engagement and resolve.
• Unmarried women are committed to voting. Asked to rate their chances of participating on a 10-point scale, 82 percent of registered women rated their chances as a “10” (almost certain to vote), as did 64 percent of unregistered women.
• Unmarried women see change in the Democrats. In both a generic ballot for President and a named trial heat for Congress, unmarried women deliver huge margins for Democratic candidates.

Methodology

This survey of 865 unmarried women, including 349 unmarried women listed as unregistered, was conducted between November 28 and December 7, 2007. It includes women from the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania and South Carolina and carries an overall margin of error of +/- 3.3 points.