The cancellation of student debt has become a polarizing feature of American politics recently. However, according to Courier Newsroom’s news outlet, Cardinal & Pine, the policy has started to enjoy mass support. Canceling federal student loan payments will be a big political win for President Joe Biden show polls conducted by Data for Progress and Courier Newsroom. Voters below the age of 45 are particularly in support of this policy.
The Courier Newsroom poll shows that an overwhelming majority (58%) are in favor of canceling student debts. At the minimum, it is hoped that the pause on payments will continue in September. The best-case scenario is the cancellation of portions of debt.
The pause had been introduced in early 2020 due to the pandemic and payments were slated to resume in August 2022. However, on August 24, 2022, President Biden announced that most students will be able to cancel a portion of their loans. This was welcome news for many Americans. The poll by Courier Newsroom showed that more than two-thirds of voters under 45 were in favor of extending the moratorium on student debt payments.
The cancellation of student debt will have a huge impact on North Carolinians. In North Carolina, the number of people benefitting from these cancellations may be as high as 1.3 million according to Lending Tree. Residents may be able to cancel up to $20,000 in student debt. The state average exceeds $36,000.
Support for the policy is also influenced on partisan grounds. 78% of Democrat voters were strongly to somewhat in support of the pause on repayments. While 38% of Republican voters expressed strong to somewhat support for pausing the payments.
The poll found that canceling debt is even more popular than pausing student debt payments. For the 45% of voters that support canceling at least $25,000, the announcement by President Biden is welcome news. Support for debt cancellation further increased when voters were asked if this cancellation should be offered to borrowers from low- and middle-income backgrounds. 63% of voters supported the cancellation of at least $10,000 for such borrowers.
In the lead up to the announcement, the Biden administration had been under significant pressure from student loan borrowers, progressives, activists, and young Americans, to cancel more than $10,000 of student debt. Supporters of cancellation have extended a moral basis for the cancellation. They have also argued that the cancellation will benefit Biden politically, who lacks the support of voters under 35.
According to Courier Newsroom’s poll, the majority will not change their voting plans if Biden cancels student debt. However, 45% of voters under 45 will turn up to vote in the future after the debt cancellation. 8% said that they would not vote if Biden canceled student debt. The debt cancellation also positively impacts the probability of Democrats winning the election, as 41% of voters under 45 said they will be more likely to vote Democrat after the debt cancellation.
The cancellation of student debt has also sparked a parallel discussion on the affordability of college education in the United States. 49% of voters feel that public college tuition should be lowered, whereas 35% feel that it should be free. Only 12% are against lowering public college tuition. More Democrats (53%) support tuition-free public colleges, as opposed to few Republicans (18%). However, there is large support (57%) for lowering public college tuition even among Republican voters. At the moment, Republicans are also pursuing legal action against the cancellation of student debt.
While problems with public colleges are structural, canceling student debt is a quick fix to alleviate the problems of burdened Americans.