Majority of North Carolinians want Confederate monuments to stay, poll says

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – Nearly two-thirds of North Carolina residents support keeping Confederate statues and monuments on public property, according to a recent Elon University poll.

A survey of 1,500 North Carolina residents saw 65 percent saying they want Confederate monuments to stay on public, government-owned property such as parks, city squares and courthouses.

The other 35 percent want to see the monuments removed.

Of those who want the monuments to stay in place, 77 percent of those are white and 27 percent black, the poll shows.

“Republicans overwhelmingly support keeping Confederate statues and monuments on public property, with 91 percent holding that view, while just 36 percent of Democrats support keeping them where they are,” Elon University said in a release.

A total of 72 percent of those surveyed support adding historical context to the monuments through plaques.

The poll comes as a Confederate monument in Pittsboro was removed overnight.

Pittsboro’s removal is one of a string of monuments coming down across the state over the last couple years.

A statue in Durham was pulled down by protesters in August 2017.

In August 2018, the monument known as “Silent Sam” on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill was also toppled by protesters.

In March, Winston-Salem removed a Confederate monument.

Elon also asked residents about the cause of the Civil War and received a split response.

The survey of 1,467 North Carolina residents was conducted Nov. 4-6, 2019, through an online opt-in sample marketplace. The survey had a credibility interval of +/- 2.8 percent, according to Elon.

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