Syringes with vaccines are prepared at the L.A. Care and Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plans’ Community Resource Center where they were offering members and the public free flu and COVID-19 vaccines Friday, Oct. 28, 2022, in Lynwood, Calif. Morning Consult survey:

A majority of voters overall see advantages to vaccination, though there’s a large partisan divide on the question.

Among Democratic voters, 76 percent said they “care more about potential health benefits than the potential health risks of vaccines.” But among Republicans, it’s split evenly: 51 percent care more about the potential health risks, while 49 percent care more about the benefits.

Voters overwhelmingly think vaccines are safe for adults, with a combined 86 percent saying vaccines are “very” or “somewhat” safe for adults 18 and older.

But beneath the surface, the differences between parties are stark. Overall, 48 percent said vaccines are “very safe,” including 64 percent of Democratic voters but only 33 percent of Republicans. Nearly half of Republicans, 45 percent, said they’re “somewhat safe” — demonstrating that GOP skepticism around vaccines doesn’t mean all-out opposition.

The chasm between the two parties is widest when it comes to the Covid shot in particular. The overwhelming majority of Democratic voters (91 percent) said Covid vaccines are “very” or “somewhat” safe for adults. But barely half of Republicans (52 percent) said the same.

Only 27 percent of Republicans said the Covid vaccine is “very safe” for adults — while nearly as many, 23 percent, said it’s “very unsafe.”

Republicans are also significantly more skeptical of efforts to encourage vaccination for Covid.

Asked whether Americans should be encouraged or discouraged to get the Covid vaccine, or whether Americans “should be able to make their own decisions” about it “without the input of others,” 64 percent of Democratic voters said Americans should be encouraged to get the shot, but only 26 percent of Republicans agreed. A majority of Republicans, 58 percent, said Americans should be able to make their own decisions without any input, but just 31 percent of Democrats said that.

Meanwhile, fewer Republicans than Democrats said they plan to get the newly released Covid booster shot, which became available earlier this month.

The difference between Democratic and Republican parents is smaller than for other groups — but it’s significant and appears to be growing.

Roughly four-in-five parents or guardians of children (79 percent) said they “tend to follow a government-recommended vaccine schedule” for their children, including 86 percent of Democratic parents, 74 percent of Republican parents and 71 percent of independent parents.

The POLITICO