The following data originally appeared in Bravo Group’s Morning Scrapple email newsletter delivered on May 22, 2025. To become a subscriber click here
Welcome back to Bravo Group’s Morning Scrapple, our monthly snapshot of political opinion from the nation’s most important battleground state.
Thank you as always for your continued support and an extra thank you to former Congressman Charlie Dent for this cable TV namecheck:
This month’s serving slices and dices everything from Sen. Fetterman’s (dis)approval to “skill games” and even a side of federal Medicaid proposals.
Order up.
A lower tariff lifts all pols
On May 9, President Trump took to social media and discussed lowering tariffs. The markets weren’t the only thing to rebound.
Generally speaking, is the United States heading in the right or wrong direction?
U.S. wrong track: 58% (April) → 56% (May)
U.S. right track: 37% (April) → 41% (May)
Generally speaking, is Pennsylvania heading in the right or wrong direction?
PA wrong track: 39% (April) → 36% (May)
PA right track: 32% (April) → 41% (May)
Do you approve or disapprove of the job Donald Trump is doing as President?
Donald Trump, President: 38% (April) → 42% (May) approve
Do you approve or disapprove of the job John Fetterman/Dave McCormick is doing in the US Senate?
John Fetterman, U.S. Senator: 40% (April) → 41% (May) approve
Dave McCormick, U.S. Senator: 34% (April) → 37% (May) approve
Governor Shapiro’s numbers continue to climb
If the election for Pennsylvania Governor was held today, who would you vote for?
Vote for Shapiro: 59% (April) → 69% (May)
Issues
Respondents were asked to choose the top three issues most important to them:
Also seeing a bump… residents who assume tariffs will hurt them: 69% (April) → 71% (May)
In the next 12 months, tariffs placed on products I regularly purchase will:
Most Pennsylvanians still don’t trust the bear in the woods
Regarding the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, who do you more strongly support?
PA civics lesson
Which political party has the majority of elected officials in Pennsylvania’s State Senate?
Which political party has the majority of elected officials in Pennsylvania’s State House?
Which political party has the majority of elected officials in Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court?
Medicaid remains central to the Big Beautiful Bill passage
Policymakers are considering proposals to add work requirements for able-bodied recipients in an effort to reduce the federal Medicaid health program spending.
Do you support or oppose these proposed cuts to the Medicaid program?
Policymakers are considering proposals to ensure illegal immigrants can’t access federal Medicaid benefits in an effort to reduce federal Medicaid health program spending.
Do you support or oppose these proposed cuts to the Medicaid program?
Policymakers are considering setting upper income levels for recipients of Medicaid in an effort to reduce federal Medicaid health program spending.
Do you support or oppose these proposed cuts to the Medicaid program?
Democracy data
Group A: In your opinion, how is power distributed in the U.S. government today?
Power is mostly held by the general public through elected officials — 6%
Power is shared fairly between the public, elected officials and powerful interests — 20%
Power is mostly held by a small group of wealthy and well-connected individuals or corporations — 74%
Group B: Which term do you think best describes the U.S. government today?
Energy demands demand solutions
As energy demand grows, particularly with the increasing use of AI data centers, how should these energy sources be prioritized to meet increasing demand?
1 = highest priority, 4 = lowest priority
Renewables — 43% highest priority — 21% lowest priority
Nuclear — 28% highest priority — 15% lowest priority
Natural Gas — 23% highest priority — 5% lowest priority
Coal — 6% highest priority — 58% lowest priority
Gas station games
We combined the picture below with our question to ensure respondents precisely understood the issue.
Gambling is legal at licensed casinos and their online platforms, as well as at horse racing facilities, online sports betting and the Pennsylvania Lottery.
Who would you rather vote for:
A state legislator who SUPPORTS making gambling legal at gas stations and convenience stores — 33%
A state legislator who OPPOSES making gambling legal at gas stations and convenience stores — 67%
Each month, we survey Pennsylvania registered voters through digital advertising, randomized text message outreach and email recontact with prior opt-in survey participants. This multichannel recruitment ensures a refreshed and representative respondent pool.
This digital survey of 626 likely Pennsylvania voters was conducted from May 7-13, 2025. Results were weighted by age, gender, and political party to reflect Pennsylvania’s electorate, producing a 95% credibility interval: ±4.3 percentage points.
If you’d like to know more about our methodology or have a question, comment or concern please feel free to email us at morningscrapple@thebravogroup.com
Thank you for supporting Morning Scrapple!
