Rutgers-Eagleton Poll: New Jerseyans Want to See Their Family and Friends, Go
out, Eat out, and Get Back to Work

Residents praise essential workers as heroes; most say they are doing well

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (June 9, 2020) – “Hug my parents”; “kiss my wife”; “hold someone’s
hand.” When asked about the first thing they will do when life in New Jersey returns to normal,
one in five residents (20%) crave re-connecting with loved ones, according to the latest RutgersEagleton Poll. Similar numbers want to simply go to a different place other than their house,
such as the gym; or do familiar pre-pandemic activities, like shopping.

Just over one in ten want to eat out – a wish that will be granted to some extent with the
introduction of outdoor dining next week. Others just want to get back to work (7%), go on
vacation or to the shore (each at 6%), or simply get a haircut (3%).

Women (26%) and millennials
(24%) are some of the top
groups most likely to want to
interact with family and friends.
Those most affected by the
pandemic in terms of work are
especially eager to get back to
it, such as non-white residents
(11%), millennials (10%), and
those in the lowest income
bracket (15%).

“New Jerseyans are longing for human connection and a return to the ordinary after almost
three months of the pandemic,” said Ashley Koning, assistant research professor and director of
the Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling (ECPIP) at Rutgers University–New Brunswick.

“Yet despite this yearning for normalcy, our polling has shown that New Jerseyans do not
expect things to be fully back to normal anytime soon and are still worried about what the
future of the pandemic may bring.”

Unsurprisingly, New Jerseyans express immense gratitude when asked what they would like to
say to healthcare workers, first responders, and essential workers in the Garden State. Fifty-six
percent of residents express some form of thanks, another 16% praise the job these workers
are doing, and 9% offer their thoughts and prayers. “You are true heroes,” one resident said.
Another noted, “We owe them everything.” Some respondents expressed pride, the need for
hazard pay for essential workers, and advocated wearing masks and staying home in their
honor. A respondent who is an essential worker returned the gratitude, wanting to “thank
everyone.”

Most New Jerseys are doing well
during this pandemic. When
asked to describe in one word
how they feel, 29% claim they
are “doing great”; another 22% are “all right,” and 8% say they are “okay.” Another one in five
feel more negative – scared or anxious (5%), tired (5%), annoyed or angry (4%), awful (4%), or
stressed (4%).

Results are from a statewide poll
of 1,502 adults contacted by live
callers on landlines and cell
phones from April 22 – May 2.
The full sample has a margin of
error of +/-2.9 percentage
points; the subsamples of 747
and 755 adults each have a
margin of error of +/-4.1
percentage points. Interviews
were done in English and, when
requested, Spanish.