Here Are The 5 Most Important U S Economic Issues For Voters

Leo Migdal

-Oct 28, 2025, 5:34 PM

here are the 5 most important u s economic issues for voters

Updated on: October 29, 2024 / 3:44 PM EDT / CBS News With polls showing that Americans rank the economy as their most pressing concern in the November 5 election, both Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are making last-minute pitches to convince... At the same time, many factors that affect the nation's economic performance are beyond the president's control, from shocks like Russia's invasion of Ukraine to the pandemic's supply-chain snarls, which contributed to the highest... inflation in 40 years. Although experts largely give the current economy high marks, most Americans don't agree, with 52% telling Gallup that they feel worse off today than four years ago. That's partly due to partisan differences — Republicans are much more likely than Democrats to say they're struggling more than in 2020, Gallup found — but economists say it's also linked to lingering pain...

"It's inflation, stupid!" wrote Bernard Yaros, U.S. lead economist at Oxford Economics, in an October 24 report, borrowing from political strategist James Carville's famous coinage. "Inflation is the foremost issue voters are concerned about, and how it is perceived will determine the election." As concerns around the state of the economy and inflation continue, about eight-in-ten registered voters (81%) say the economy will be very important to their vote in the 2024 presidential election. While the economy is the top issue among voters, a large majority (69%) cite at least five of the 10 issues asked about in the survey as very important to their vote. There are wide differences between voters who support Harris and Trump when it comes to the issues.

Among Trump supporters, the economy (93%), immigration (82%) and violent crime (76%) are the leading issues. Just 18% of Trump supporters say racial and ethnic inequality is very important. And even fewer say climate change is very important (11%). For Harris supporters, issues such as health care (76%) and Supreme Court appointments (73%) are of top importance. Large majorities also cite the economy (68%) and abortion (67%) as very important to their vote in the election. WASHINGTON, D.C.

-- The economy ranks as the most important of 22 issues that U.S. registered voters say will influence their choice for president. It is the only issue on which a majority of voters, 52%, say the candidates’ positions on it are an “extremely important” influence on their vote. Another 38% of voters rate the economy as “very important,” which means the issue could be a significant factor to nine in 10 voters. Voters view Donald Trump as better able than Kamala Harris to handle the economy, 54% versus 45%. Trump also has an edge on perceptions of his handling of immigration (+9 percentage points) and foreign affairs (+5), while Harris is seen as better on climate change (+26), abortion (+16) and healthcare (+10).

The candidates are evenly matched on voters’ impressions of who would better address gun policy. Just under half of voters overall agree with Trump (49%) or Harris (47%) on the issues that matter most to them. These findings are from a Gallup poll conducted Sept. 16-28. The current 52% of voters rating the economy as an “extremely important” influence on their vote for president is the highest since October 2008 during the Great Recession, when 55% of voters said the... In polls conducted closest to the election in other presidential election years since 1996, between 38% and 44% of voters rated candidates’ positions on the economy as extremely important to their vote.

Half of these readings are from September or October polling; the exceptions are 2000 (August), 2012 (February) and 2016 (May). ELECTION DAY 2025: Follow full coverage from The Associated Press on our live blog and results pages. WASHINGTON (AP) — Economic worries were the dominant concern as voters cast ballots for Tuesday’s elections, according to preliminary findings from the AP Voter Poll. The results of the expansive survey of more than 17,000 voters in New Jersey, Virginia, California and New York City suggested the public was troubled by an economy that seems trapped by higher prices... And a year after President Donald Trump was brought back to the White House on the promise that he could tame inflation and unleash growth, economic worries were still at the top of voters’... Despite a rising stock market, inflation remains elevated, and hiring has slowed sharply.

Since October, a federal government shutdown has only compounded the sense of uncertainty. While Trump has tried to highlight his efforts to deport immigrants in the country illegally and send federal officers and National Guard troops into cities to fight crime, few voters saw these issues as... Ahead of the 2024 election, voters are consistently indicating that the economy is one of their top issues. However, we have found that surveys may actually be underreporting the specific importance of inflation for voters this year. Moving forward, Data for Progress is using a new way to track issue importance, honing in on specific factors motivating respondents to select different issue areas as important to their vote. Findings From Previous Issue Importance Questions

From July 2023 to February 2024, Data for Progress tracked likely voters’ most pressing concerns with the question: “Of the choices listed below, which do you think are the top three most important issues... Specifically, the choice labeled “jobs and the economy” has maintained a consistent level of importance, hovering around 30%. Inflation, which held the top spot for the majority of the time, fluctuated to 32% in July from a high of 40% in October. Notably, while inflation and economic matters have remained steady as top priorities, immigration saw a notable uptick in importance among voters beginning in mid-2023. In October, immigration surpassed “jobs and the economy,” and continued to rank as the second-most important issue through the end of the year, largely driven by respondents who identified as Republican or lean Republican. The significance of immigration continued to rise, ultimately becoming the primary focus for voters in the latter half of January 2024.

However, if “jobs and the economy” and inflation were combined into one category, that category would consistently be the top issue. A New Way of Asking About Issue Importance The provided text discusses the key economic issues that are likely to influence voters' decisions in the upcoming U.S. election. The article examines the current economic climate, including inflation, the... Copyright 2025 - Spreaker Inc.

an iHeartMedia Company Browse Spreaker Catalogue to discover great new content Browse Spreaker Catalogue to discover great new content Lecturer in American Politics, University College Cork Associate Professor in American Politics and American Foreign Policy, University of Leicester The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

University of Leicester and University College Cork provide funding as members of The Conversation UK. The Democrats think that “hope is making a comeback”, as former first lady Michelle Obama put it in her speech to the Democratic National Convention (DNC). The party has recently begun to pick up more votes in the ever-crucial swing states (those that often move between Republicans and Democrats) that will determine the outcome of the presidential election in November. Josh Boak, Associated Press Josh Boak, Associated Press Linley Sanders, Associated Press Linley Sanders, Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Voters said the economy and immigration are the top issues facing the country, but the future of democracy was also a leading motivator for many Americans casting a ballot in Tuesday’s...

INTERACTIVE MAP: Create your own projections for the 2024 presidential race, based on race ratings from Cook Political Report AP VoteCast, an expansive survey of more than 110,000 voters nationwide, found a country mired in negativity and desperate for change as Americans faced a stark choice between former President Donald Trump and Vice... The economy tops surveys of voters' most important issues. The tumultuous presidential campaign has featured a replacement at the top of the Democratic ticket, two apparent assassination attempts against former President Donald Trump and the unexpected significance of a joke made in the... Despite the twists and turns, voters have voiced a consistent priority: the economy matters most. A Gallup poll last month showed that 52% of voters consider the economy an extremely important influence on their choice for president, far outpacing any other concern.

With polls set to close within hours, ABC News spoke with experts to discuss where the economy stands at the conclusion of the race. Here’s a look at the state of the economy on Election Day, by the numbers. Inflation has bedeviled the U.S. for the past several years -- but in recent months price increases have slowed back down to a normal pace.

Here Are The 5 Most Important U S Economic Issues For Voters

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Updated On: October 29, 2024 / 3:44 PM EDT /

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