Obama or Romney? Contractors express their views

A survey of licensed contractors by BuildZoom, a matchmaking service for consumers and contractors, indicated a preference for presidential candidate Mitt Romney by a wide margin. 

When asked who would make a better president, nearly 75% of respondents named Mitt Romney over Barack Obama as their choice. Their reason was based, primarily, on the economy, including job creation, taxation, the budget deficit and general economic growth

Respondents were asked to justify their response, and a closer analysis of their responses revealed two major themes amongst Romney supporters, according to BuildZoom. First, contractors generally felt that Romney had more business experience, which would translate into better results for the U.S. economy. Second, contractors were driven by general dissatisfaction with Obama.

Of the 26% who chose Obama over Romney, these contractors pointed to Obama’s character while also expressing their belief in Obama’s empathy for the middle class. Several respondents also expressed concern with Romney’s “Wall Street” background.

The survey represents feedback from 237 licensed contractors, registered on BuildZoom. Almost half (49%) stated that their party affiliation was Republican. Of the remainder, 12% were Democrats, 33% were Independents, 5% listed Tea Party, and 1% said they were Libertarians.

Contractors were also asked to evaluate how the Recovery Act has benefited the construction industry. Nearly half (47%) reported that the Recovery Act hasn’t helped at all, while 33% responded that it has helped "a little."

A majority of contractors (77%) reported that they had not been provided with enough information on how to take advantage of Recovery Act opportunities. The general sentiment seemed to be that the Recovery Act primarily helped larger businesses. According to one respondent, “I need more information about how it can help a small construction business. I know it has helped put laborers back to work for the big prime contractors and mid-size contractors.”