A new poll finds the state budget and taxes are foremost on many voters' minds when it comes to this year's governor's race. The MPR-St. Paul Pioneer Press poll found respondents prefer balancing the budget with budget cuts instead of raising taxes. Yet more than half of poll respondents also support a gax tax increase, and three out of five would back a cigarette tax hike.

The poll of 625 eligible voters last week found more than one in four consider budget and taxes to be the single most important issue to them in the governor's race. Education ranked second, followed by candidate character and experience.

Dan Hofrenning, chair of the political science department at St. Olaf College, says Minnesota's tumultuous journey from budget surpluses to budget deficits has gotten voters' attention.

"The fact that budget issues were on top of education does show that voters have got it. Voters realize that we're in a difficult fiscal situation," he said.

Finance officials say Minnesota will likely face a budget deficit of more than $1.6 billion in the next two-year budget cycle. Fifty-four percent of those polled say state officials should cut spending to balance the budget. Eighteen percent would support raising taxes. Even though it wasn't offered as an option, 23 percent told pollsters they'd prefer a mix of cuts and taxes. The poll has a four percentage point margin of error.

One of the poll respondents who wants the state to tighten its belt is Rachelle Hull, who lives north of Two Harbors. Hull and her husband own a saw mill, which has seen tough times over the last few years.

"It just seems like you're constantly struggling to get the money in so you can give it back to the state for all the different things that the state wants money for. So as a small business owner, it would be really nice to see less taxes, less spending, more back to us so we can actually put more into the economy," she said.

Hull says the state shouldn't have any sacred cows, and all programs should be on the table for potential cuts. But about half of those polled say K-12 education should be spared from cuts.

Nils Dybvig of Minneapolis, who works as a planner for Ramsey County, says his mother serves on a school board, and he has friends who are teachers. Dybvig says all of them talk about the budget cuts districts are facing.

"They have to bring in paper to make copies with because they can't get paper in their schools, and I just think that we really need to prioritize our schools and invest in kids," Dybvig said.

Dybvig says instead of cutting spending, state officials should raise taxes to balance the budget. Dybvig wants lawmakers to raise the gas tax. The poll found slightly more than half of respondents support a gas tax increase earmarked for road construction. About the same amount would support a gas tax increase for roads and transit.

Walter Hinz, a salesman who lives in Edina, says he'd pay an extra nickel a gallon for gas if the money only went to roads. He'd like to see Highway 100 expanded to three lanes near his house.

"I happen to live on 44th Street, and it's a busy street. People, because of the congestion on 100, are short-cutting and coming across 44th Street, trying to get into the downtown area," he said.

The poll showed even more support for a cigarette tax increase. About three out of five respondents back a 60-cent-per-pack increase to balance the budget. Even some respondents who said they're generally opposed to tax increases support a cigarette tax hike.

Jeff Renken, a computer consultant who lives in Blue Earth, says he considers himself a fiscal conservative, but wouldn't mind raising the cigarette tax.

"I'm not a smoker; anything we can do to discourage smoking, particularly if we can stop the entry level, make it more difficult for the young people to get involved in it, I'm all for it," Renken said.

Political scientist Hofrenning says the poll results show that while there is a general aversion to raising taxes, Minnesotans are more open to certain tax increases such as the gas tax and so-called "sin taxes".

See the complete poll results