As American voters head to the polls on Tuesday for the 2026 midterm elections, public opinion surveys indicate that economic anxieties, cost-of-living pressures, and immigration remain top-of-mind concerns. While voters across the political spectrum share unease about rising household expenses, pre-election polling from October and November highlights striking divergences in how Democrats and Republican supporters view the national economy, presidential job performance, and the urgency of specific policy issues.
The economy commands near-universal attention from the electorate, though partisan priorities diverge sharply on secondary issues. According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted between September 28 and October 4, 84 percent of registered voters deemed the economy very important to their midterm ballot choice. This included 82 percent of respondents favoring Republican candidates and 88 percent of those backing Democrats. Beyond broad economic agreement, however, the two groups prioritized distinct policy domains. Roughly 85 percent of Democratic supporters ranked the future of democracy as very important, compared with 69 percent of Republicans. Healthcare registered as a high priority for 82 percent of Democrats versus 53 percent of Republicans.
Conversely, Republican voters placed greater emphasis on border security and public safety. Immigration was cited as very important by 72 percent of Republican supporters, compared with 53 percent of Democrats, while violent crime concerned 64 percent of Republicans and 37 percent of Democrats. Polling conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation between September 16 and 21 also showed that registered voters trusted Democrats over Republicans by wide margins on handling healthcare costs at 42 percent to 22 percent, and on the cost of living at 39 percent to 25 percent.
Public assessment of President Donald Trump’s second term remains starkly polarized. The Pew survey found that 91 percent of Democratic respondents and Democratic-leaning voters believed the administration’s economic policies had worsened conditions. Among Republican supporters, views were more fragmented: 39 percent credited the policies with improving the economy, 35 percent felt they worsened conditions, and 25 percent perceived little effect. Overall presidential job approval stood at 40 percent in an NBC News poll released on November 1, with 60 percent disapproving.
Negative sentiment regarding macroeconomic conditions is widespread, though Democrats expressed sharper pessimism. An October Pew survey showed that only 9 percent of Democrats and Democratic leaners rated the US economy as excellent or good, compared with 36 percent of Republicans. Yet large majorities in both groups reported acute anxiety over specific household expenses. Food and consumer prices worried 82 percent of Democrats and 62 percent of Republicans, while healthcare costs concerned 80 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of Republicans. Energy and fuel prices drew worry from 81 percent of Democrats and 65 percent of Republicans. Additional negative economic evaluations appeared in an October 14 poll, where 74 percent rated the economy poorly and 60 percent named the cost of living their primary economic worry, alongside an NBC poll indicating that 53 percent of Republican respondents were dissatisfied with economic conditions.
Pole-to-poll comparisons also revealed shifts from prior election cycles. Pew data indicated that abortion and gun policy held less centrality for Democratic respondents compared with the 2022 midterms, while education and energy policies receded in importance for Republican voters compared with four years prior.
Personal financial dissatisfaction reached notable milestones in late-season polling. The November 1 NBC News poll found that 51 percent of registered voters were dissatisfied with their personal financial situation, while 49 percent were satisfied—marking the first time in 30 years of that poll’s tracking that personal financial dissatisfaction outweighed satisfaction. An NPR/PBS News/Marist poll conducted October 19-20 reported that 38 percent of likely voters felt their finances had worsened over the prior year, 44 percent saw no change, and 15 percent reported improvement. The financial strain was felt differently across party lines; 51 percent of Democratic likely voters reported that their finances deteriorated, compared with 21 percent of Republicans. Furthermore, a /Ipsos survey conducted from September 30 to October 5 showed that 71 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of Republicans felt their incomes had failed to keep pace with inflation.
Analysts pointed to broader geopolitical and domestic factors compounding household pressures. Eric Ham, a former Democratic congressional staffer and Senate national security adviser, noted that global trade tariffs implemented by the administration and foreign conflicts contributed to financial strains on families. John Fury, a former Republican congressional staffer, observed that the final stretch of campaigning centered heavily on voter mobilization rather than persuasion, describing the contest as a base-turnout election.
Despite economic pessimism, enthusiasm among Democratic voters registered higher in several surveys. The Marist poll showed 91 percent of likely Democratic voters felt enthusiastic or very enthusiastic about participating, compared with 86 percent of Republicans and 76 percent of Independents. Similarly, KFF data indicated that supporters of Democratic candidates were 25 percentage points more likely than Republican backers to describe themselves as more motivated than usual to vote, at 63 percent versus 38 percent. The NBC News poll confirmed high overall engagement, with 70 percent of registered voters rating their interest at nine or 10 on a 10-point scale.
Final preference surveys conducted in the closing weeks suggested an advantage for Democratic candidates in congressional preference metrics. An NBC poll from late October indicated that 52 percent of registered voters preferred Democratic control of Congress against 45 percent favoring Republican control. A /Ipsos poll from late October similarly found 53 percent of likely voters intending to vote for or lean toward Democratic candidates in their districts, compared with 44 percent supporting Republicans, though pollsters emphasized that these figures measure voter sentiment rather than final election outcomes.
