Poll: Black, Latino Californians Feel COVID-19 Impact Hardest

A new statewide survey from the Public Policy Institute of California underscores the disparate impact people of color and lower-income Californians are feeling from the devastating health and economic fallouts resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.

Thirty-five percent of all adults say they or someone in their household have been laid off or lost their job, but that number rises to 49% among Latinos versus 24% of whites.

Similarly, while 51% of all adults report reduced work hours or a pay cut since the pandemic began 66% of Latinos say that along with 60% of African Americans, compared with 39% of whites.

The trend is similar among those asked whether they're having difficulty paying their rent or mortgage, with 44% of Latinos saying yes compared with 21% of Asian Americans and 15% of whites.

All of those indicators of economic distress also correlate with household income, with 47% of adults earning less than $40,000 a year saying they're now unemployed compared with 22% of those earning $80,000 or more.

The contrast by race is also present over concerns about getting sick from the coronavirus. While 48% of whites are either very or somewhat concerned about getting sick and requiring hospitalization, more than 60% of Latinos and Asian Americans say that as do 63% of blacks.

Among adults earning $80,000 a year or more, only 17% are very concerned about getting sick while 30% of those earning less than $40,000 say so.

There is somewhat greater consistency across racial lines when it comes to attitudes about restrictions on public activities due to the pandemic. Asked about the appropriate level of limitations on "normal activities," 49% of whites say the current level of restrictions is about right, compared with 47% of African American and Asian Americans and 45% of Latinos.

There are also sharp partisan differences on the question of government-imposed limitations. Asked about decisions regarding Gov. Gavin Newsom's guidelines for reopening the state, 82% of Democrats say their greatest concern is that restrictions are relaxed too quickly, versus 27% of Republicans. Independents are about evenly split on that question.

Despite the economic fallout from shutting down the economy, support for even more restrictions is greatest among Latinos (37%) and African Americans (27%) and lowest among whites (15%).

When asked about the future course of the pandemic, Californians are even split on whether the worst is behind us (46%) or yet to come (48%). Once again, a majority of black, Latino and Asian American adults think the worst is yet to come, while a slight majority of whites (51%) think the worst is behind us.

The survey also shows strong overall support for Newsom's handling of his job, with 64% of likely voters saying they approve and 31% saying they disapprove. Once again, the partisan divide is evident, with 86% of Democrats approving of the job Newsom is doing compared with 27% of Republicans.

Support for the governor is strongest in the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles, where 71% of likely voters approve of his performance, and lowest in the Inland Empire (55%) and Central Valley (64%).

Not surprisingly, asked to name the most important issue facing California, COVID-19 (36%) and jobs and the economy (23%) are by far the top concerns of Californians.

The PPIC survey was conducted May 17-26, 2020, and results are based on the answers of 1,706 California adult residents. Results are accurate within a margin of plus or minus 3.5%.