Survey: Bostonians Are Pretty ‘Meh’ on Hosting the Olympics
The second poll in as many weeks found tepid support among locals for hosting the 2024 Olympics in Boston, a sign that support isn’t as strong as local Olympic leaders have suggested.
A WBUR survey released Tuesday found that just half of respondents said they support hosting the Olympics, while 33 percent said they were opposed to it. Among all age groups, those between 18 to 29 years old were the most supportive, with 59 percent in support to 21 percent opposed. Among those surveyed over 60 years old, though, support fell to 40 percent for hosting the Olympics, while 42 percent said they were opposed.
The survey also tested Mayor Marty Walsh’s recent proclamation that he’d “bet if you took a poll today, the majority of Bostonians are excited about this bid.’’ The WBUR poll asked that exact question (“Would you say you are excited’’ about the bid?), and got a resounding “meh.’’ Some 48 percent of Bostonians said they were excited, while 43 percent said they were not.
“It’s both pretty close and not a majority,’’ Steve Koczela of The MassINC Polling Group, which conducted the survey, told WBUR. “It does in a sense call into question some of the more optimistic statements that the mayor has made.’’
The entire survey isn’t the most inspiring for Boston2024 backers. The support level “looks somewhat anemic,’’ Katharine Q. Seelye of
The New York Timeswrites.
The WBUR survey is the second poll in the past few weeks to pump the brakes on the public’s appetite for hosting the Olympics. A poll conducted by Boston-based campaign consulting firm Sage Systems found 55 percent were in support for hosting the Olympics, while 40 percent were against.
The WBUR poll surveyed just over 200 registered voters in Boston and another 300 in the immediate surrounding area. The margin of error is 4.9 percent for the whole sample and 6.7 percent for Boston respondents.
The hesitance appears to be due to wariness of spending public money to host the games, the WBUR poll found. A total of 53 percent of respondents said they think taxpayer funds will be required to cover the cost of the Olympics, dwarfing the 29 percent who said they thought private funds would do the trick.
Finally, three-quarters of respondents said areas hosting Olympic venues should vote on whether they want to host the games. Holding a referendum is a key point of No Boston Olympics, the primary organized group opposing a Boston Olympics bid, though Walsh has said he does not think there will be a vote.
In any case, it’s not entirely clear that a lack of overwhelming support from Bostonians would impact the IOC’s ultimate decision. Mark Arsenault of The Boston Globereports that the IOC’s selection of the host city is highly political, and often comes down to personal relationships with leaders.
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com