Most swing state voters back measure to regulate Apple, Google app stores: poll

Most swing state voters believe that Congress hasn’t done enough to regulate Big Tech, according to a poll from the Coalition for App Fairness, which is pushing for legislation to crack down on tech giants.

The poll found that 69 percent of likely voters surveyed in eight swing states disapprove of the job lawmakers have done regulating tech giants, and 68 percent said that the Silicon Valley firms have too much power. 

The coalition, whose members include app developers such as Epic Games and Spotify, released the poll as it lobbied lawmakers to pass the Open App Markets Act, a bipartisan bill that would block Apple and Google from favoring their own apps in searches and stop them from preventing users from using third-party app stores. 

Seventy-nine percent of swing state voters back the measure after the polling group told them that they think it would give consumers more flexibility. The poll was conducted by Lake Research Partners and OnMessage Public Strategies. 

“These findings demonstrate that reining in mobile app store gatekeepers by passing the Open App Markets Act is a winning issue for Republicans and Democrats alike,” Rick VanMeter, executive director of the Coalition for App Fairness, said in a statement. “Congress has a simple choice: side with Big Tech or support the American people.”

The survey polled likely voters in Arizona, Georgia, New Hampshire, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, all of which are home to key Senate races in November. 

Its release comes as Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) considers whether to bring tech antitrust legislation to the floor. The Open App Markets Act advanced out of the Senate Judiciary Committee in March, but Schumer has said that he needs to secure 60 votes before holding a vote on the bill.

Apple and Google’s chief executives have personally met with lawmakers to oppose the bill, claiming that it could cause security issues for their users. Apple increased its first-quarter lobbying spending by 71 percent from the same period last year as it fought the measure.

The coalition also released a poll showing that three-quarters of California voters support the Open App Markets Act. Several California Democrats whose districts are home to tech giants have expressed concerns about Big Tech antitrust bills, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) hasn’t held a vote on the app bill.

The swing state poll surveyed 1,600 likely voters from June 6-10 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. The California poll surveyed 800 likely voters from June 1-12 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.