Morning Consult polling conducted last month shows WNBA fans, almost half of whom identify as Democrats, are likely to support the league’s advocacy efforts.
In the June 2-5 survey, 67 percent of WNBA fans said sports teams and leagues have a responsibility to use their influence to impact political and cultural issues, a greater percentage than fans of nearly every other major U.S. sports property. In addition, 64 percent of WNBA fans said it was important that their favorite sports teams and leagues express support for protesters of racial inequality in the wake of George Floyd’s death, also a larger share than among most fans of other sports leagues.
The poll was conducted among 1,454 U.S. adults who identified as sports fans and 469 self-identified WNBA fans, with respective margins of error of 3 and 5 percentage points.
Among WNBA fans, 23 percent are Republicans, while 49 percent identify as Democrats and 27 percent identify as independents.
In her letter, Loeffler wrote, “I adamantly oppose the Black Lives Matter political movement, which has advocated for the defunding of police, called for the removal of Jesus from churches and the disruption of the nuclear family structure, harbored anti-Semitic views, and promoted violence and destruction across the country.”
While a preference that athletes’ “stick to sports” softened slightly among Republicans in the wake of Floyd’s killing, Loeffler’s position that sports should remain apolitical is still likely to resonate with the Republicans she’s hoping to win over. In the poll, 57 percent of Republicans agreed it is “not the place of professional sports teams and leagues to weigh in on political and cultural issues.”
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