Polls show many Republicans are refusing COVID vaccine. What do SLO County GOP leaders say?

Recent polls show large numbers of Republicans are refusing to be vaccinated, and that’s generating headlines like these:

“In rejecting the vaccine, half of Republican men are content to put the rest of us in danger.”

“Republican men are a central part of coronavirus vaccine resistance.”

“Does the GOP have a problem with the vaccine?”

Yes, polls can be wrong. Also, what people say in a survey and what they actually do can be quite different.

Nonetheless, the numbers are concerning.

For instance, a NPR/PBS/Marist Poll shows only 6% of Democratic men say they won’t get vaccinated, compared to 49% of Republican men.

And 47% of Trump supporters said they won’t get vaccinated, versus 10% of Biden supporters.

For all our sakes, Republican Party leadership needs to respond.

For starters, brag about prominent Republicans who have gotten “the jab.”

You know, like House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

Closer to home, San Luis Obispo County Supervisor John Peschong, a Republican, is registered for the vaccine lottery.

Assemblyman Jordan Cunningham, R-Templeton, also plans to get vaccinated.

“He strongly encourages everyone to get a vaccine once they are eligible so we can finally put this virus behind us, move forward and get our lives back,” said his spokesman, Nick Mirman.

California’s Republican Party advises the same.

“We encourage everyone who is able to get a vaccine when eligible,” state GOP Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson said in a statement.

Glad to hear it.

Granted, immunizations are a personal choice, but especially in this case, it affects all of us.

We’re trying to achieve herd immunity, but it won’t happen if large swaths of the population refuse to be vaccinated.

General disgust with government in general or Democratic leadership in particular is not a reason to say no to a vaccine that’s been proven to be safe and effective.

In a purple county like San Luis Obispo, where conservative leaders — including the sheriff and district attorney — have declined to enforce COVID-19 restrictions, it’s especially important to stress that this is not a government “attack” on personal liberty.

This will, in fact, free us from restrictions.

San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow, by the way, is urging everyone to be vaccinated.

“I plan to receive the COVID-19 vaccine very soon — as soon as the staff in my office have had the opportunity to receive it before me. And I encourage all who can to obtain it as soon as they are able,” he said in an email.

Dow added that he doesn’t think political affiliation has anything to do with the issue.

“I hope that your published article will not be reduced to political rhetoric and broad brush definitions that will continue to divide the good people of our county,” he wrote. “It is time we encourage our friends to come together and celebrate that we have much more in common than we have differences.”

He also correctly pointed out that people from “diverse backgrounds” have concerns about vaccines generally, such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nephew of President John F. Kennedy.

“I respect those individuals’ right to be informed, to make their own medical decisions, and I appreciate their enthusiasm to share what information they have learned with others,” Dow wrote.

With all due respect, we wish this weren’t a political issue, but it is.

And we have difficulty respecting the rights of people to make their own medical decisions when they are based on lies and misinformation.

We very much want to come together and celebrate, but we can only do so safely when enough of us have been vaccinated to achieve herd immunity. That’s estimated to be between 75% and 85%.

So far, nearly 27% of Californians have gotten at least one dose, according to the Los Angeles Times.

We have a long way to go, and we aren’t going to get there if large groups of people opt out, not for medical reasons, but as a matter of “principle.”

We saw that happen with masks. We saw it happen with social gatherings. It cannot happen with vaccines.

We strongly urge all organizations — including political parties, churches, schools, clubs, and friend and family groups — to encourage their members to be vaccinated as soon as they’re eligible.

We’re making a special request of the Republican Party: You’re great at getting out the vote. Can you use that same dedication to get people vaccinated against COVID-19?