According to new polling commissioned by the Republican State Leadership Committee, President Biden's failures at the federal level are having a negative impact on Democrat candidates running in state-level races in 2022.
A memo from RSLC President Dee Duncan explains how the "radical liberal agenda being pursued by President Biden and his allies in Washington, D.C. is sinking Democrats at the state legislative level in a number of key battleground states across the country" as the most pressing issues for voters across the country are ones on which Biden and Democrats lag behind Republicans.
The radical liberal agenda being pursued by President Biden and his allies in Washington, D.C. is sinking Democrats at the state legislative level. Read our memo on the new battleground survey we released today ??https://t.co/M3DvNwfqxa
— Republican State Leadership Committee (@RSLC) January 27, 2022
Even worse for Democrats, the solutions proposed by Republicans enjoy more popularity among voters eager to remedy the crises created by President Biden and others in his party. Just as GOP candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate get the advantage of Americans souring on Biden's agenda, so do Republicans running for state offices. According to the poll commissioned by the RSLC, "34% of likely voters think the country is on the right track compared to 62% who believe it is on the wrong track."
And instead of being an asset for Democrat candidates, President Biden is now more of a liability with 44 percent of voters having a favorable view of the president compared to 54 percent who hold an unfavorable view. Democrat legislators at the federal level have a bit better split at 42 percent favorable to 51 percent unfavorable while Democrats at the state level fare a bit better at 44 percent favorable versus 49 percent unfavorable.
Recommended
On the flip side, Republican state legislators enjoy a 48 percent favorable to 43 percent unfavorable rating. And on a generic state legislative ballot, Republicans currently have a six-point lead over Democrats. Among independent likely voters, Republicans have an even larger 15-point advantage.
That differential, the RSLC polling shows, is because more 2022 voters (51 percent) would rather have a Republican state legislature to act as a check on what President Biden is doing at the federal level, compared with those (40 percent) who want a state legislature that backs Biden and his agenda.
The top issues for voters are unsurprising: the economy, inflation, crime, and education. The bad news for Democrats is that their party trails Republicans when it comes to which party voters think are better at handling and mitigating their effects:
- 96% of those surveyed said the “economy in general” is an important issue to them as they consider who to vote for this year (45% extremely important). This was the highest percentage of any issue tested.
- When it comes to which party voters trust in state government to deal with the “economy in general,” Republicans lead Democrats 51%-38%.
- 95% of those surveyed said the high cost of living / inflation is an important issue to them as they consider who to vote for this year (50% extremely important).
- State Republicans have a 49%-39% advantage on this issue.
- 94% of those surveyed said crime and violence is an important issue to them.
- State Republicans have a 50%-38% advantage on this issue.
- 91% of those surveyed said education is an important issue to them.
- State Republicans now lead on this issue 44%-43%, a huge development since education overall usually favors Democrats.
- The ground state Republicans have gained on education can be explained by the finding that Republicans lead Democrats 47%-37% when it comes to which party is more trusted to protect parental control in education.
The RSLC's poll, which surveyed 2,217 likely general election voters, was conducted by Cygnal from January 19 – 20, 2022 in the battleground states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member