With the midterm elections a week away, there’s been no shortage of polls surveying voters’ top issues as they get ready to cast their vote. While Democrats have tried to use abortion as a rallying cry for support, polls are showing that other issues take priority, including an ABC News/Ipsos poll that showed the economy and inflation as the top issues.
A Gallup poll published Monday found similar results. According to the results, among all the issues being debated this year, the economy, abortion and crime are voters’ three top issues ahead of the midterm elections. Abortion was not listed as the top issue.
In the findings, 49 percent of respondents said that the economy will be “extremely important” to their vote for Congress this year. Forty-two percent said abortion and 40 percent said crime.
Thirty-eight percent of voters said gun policy issues will be “extremely important” in their vote this year. Thirty-seven percent said immigration.
“While many aspects of the economy could factor into voters' assessment of its importance, continued high inflation is likely paramount,” the write-up said. “Inflation and mentions of the economy in general constitute the main economic concerns Americans have been citing each month this year when asked to name the most important problem facing the country.”
Broken down by political party, inflation is the top issue among most Republicans and Independents, according to the poll. Abortion, predictably, is a top issue for Democrats, as well as climate change and gun control.
Among women, abortion tied with the economy as the top. Fifty-one percent of respondents said each issue is “extremely important” ahead of the midterms. Crime came in third place, followed by gun policy and immigration.
This year, Gallup noted, there are more committed pro-choice voters than pro-life voters. But, the abortion issue does not mean that the Democrats will win the midterms:
But whatever advantage Democrats reap from the abortion issue could be offset by crime which is important to a similar proportion of voters. Also, earlier this year, it looked like gun control could be another issue in Democrats' quiver, but intensity on that issue has abated, perhaps related to higher public concern about crime.
A separate Gallup poll released Friday found that 56 percent of Americans said there is more local crime in their community nowadays compared to one year ago. This is the highest figure in the survey for this question since Gallup began asking it 50 years ago. Public perception of crime at the national level saw an uptick as well.
In the write-up, Gallup noted that inflation and crime are two of many issues on voters’ minds ahead of the elections.
There is no shortage of issues weighing on voters' minds during this year's midterm elections. As the U.S. continues to suffer from high inflation, the economy is playing a central role in the campaign. Yet, crime is also front and center in many campaigns around the country as candidates debate high crime rates, gun policy, bail reform and policing. Although crime is not one of the top issues Americans cite as the most important problem in the U.S., their belief that crime in their local area has risen in the past year has hit a new high in Gallup's trend.
While Democrats will continue to use the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision to gain support ahead of the midterms, polls are showing time and time again that Biden's failing economic policies and issues surrounding public safey will likely be voters' deciding factor when casting their ballot.
