Poll shows Southern Illinois support for bobcat hunting
<p class="p1"><span class="s1">Registered voters in Southern Illinois show support for a new law allowing bobcat hunting and trapping in Illinois, according to results from a recent poll conducted by Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s Paul Simon Public Policy Institute. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">There are almost 54 percent of voters who stated they either strongly favored or somewhat favored this new law. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Less than one-third (31.6 percent) stated they either somewhat opposed or strongly opposed the new law. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Three-in-20 (14.5 percent) did not know or answered otherwise.</span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Bobcat hunting was banned in 1972 and bobcats were a threatened species in Illinois from 1977 to 1999. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Results vary a bit by political party affiliation. The strongest support for the new law comes from independents with 62.9 percent favoring it, 18.6 percent opposing and 18.5 percent saying they don’t know. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Among Southern Illinois Republicans, 61.7 percent favor the new law, 27.1 percent oppose and 11.3 percent say they don’t know. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">The lowest level of support comes from Southern Illinois Democrats, who are nearly split, with 43.3 percent favoring the law, 41.5 percent opposing it, and 15.2 percent responding they did not know or otherwise. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">“There is majority support in Southern Illinois, where hunting is a vibrant part of recreation and culture, more so than some other parts of the state,” said Delio Calzolari, institute associate director. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">“Some opposition may be related to the 40-year ban or sensitivity that bobcats were once a threated species in Illinois. Even among voters who identify themselves as Democrats or liberals, voters support the new law in greater number than they oppose it.” </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Support for the new law drops with increased education level. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Three-fifths (58.3 percent) of voters identifying themselves as not having any college education strongly favored or somewhat favored the new law, and only a quarter of these voters (25.9 percent) somewhat opposed or strongly opposed the new law. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Among voters identifying themselves as having at least a college degree only (49.5 percent) strongly favor or somewhat favor the new law and 40.1 percent oppose. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Public Act 99-0033, signed into law by Gov. Bruce Rauner in July, goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2016, and amends the Wildlife Code to permit and regulate bobcat hunting and trapping in the Land of Lincoln for the first time in 40 years. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">The law limits hunters to one bobcat per permit per season and stipulates that the hunting and trapping be non-detrimental to bobcats continuing to exist in the wild, but the Illinois Department of Natural Resources is not required to limit the number of permits issued each season. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">The fee for permits may not exceed $5 per permit. Then-Gov. Pat Quinn vetoed a similar bill before he left office. </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">The poll of 401 registered voters covered the 18 southernmost counties in Illinois: </span></p><p class="p1"><span class="s1">Alexander, Franklin, Gallatin, Hamilton, Hardin, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Massac, Perry, Pope, Pulaski, Randolph, Saline, Union, Washington, White and Williamson.</span></p>