As the cost of college tuition continues to grow, Democrats are proposing that public schools should be free for students, and most of those polled agree.
More than six in 10 (62 percent) of Americans agree with the idea that "no family and no student should have to borrow to pay tuition at a public college or university." Democrats (82 percent) and Independents (58 percent) showed support for the idea, while most Republicans (52 percent) oppose it. However, 38 percent of Republicans do think that families and students should not become indebted to pay college tuition, according to a new YouGov poll.
The idea falls in line with the platform put forth by Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton, who in mid-August announced a $350 billion plan that would ensure students would not have to take out loans to pay tuition at four-year public colleges and universities.
Though Americans are more supportive of the idea that families and students should not have to become indebted to pay tuition, only 46 percent support the idea that the government should use taxes to pay tuition at public colleges and universities in order to bypass indebtedness. Forty-one percent disagree with this proposal.
However, attitudes toward the idea are partisan: Seventy-two percent of Democrats support the idea of the government taking over college and university payments, while 73 percent of Republicans oppose it. Independents are divided, 40 percent in favor and 42 percent against.
The poll of 1,000 American adults was conducted Aug. 11-12 with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.1 percent.