Voters Prioritize Fighting Inflation and Crime, Boosting Republicans

Frustration with Democrat-fueled inflation and the surge in violent crime is persuading voters to vote Republican in next week’s midterm elections. The Wall Street Journal found that Republicans now lead the generic congressional ballot 46% to 44%, a five-point shift towards the GOP since August. Voters were also increasingly pessimistic about the direction of the country and the economy.

Wall Street Journal: Voters are giving Republicans a late boost in support just ahead of the midterm elections, as pessimism about the economy and the direction of the country jump to their highest levels of the year, a new Wall Street Journal poll finds…

Voters lack confidence in President Biden’s economic leadership, with only 27% saying his policies have had a positive impact on the economy and 54% saying they have had a negative impact. A majority of voters—55%—disapprove of Mr. Biden’s overall job performance, compared with 43% who approve.

The GOP has seen a shift in its favor among several voter groups, including Latino voters and women, and particularly white suburban women. That group, which the pollsters said makes up 20% of the electorate, shifted 26 percentage points away from Democrats since the Journal’s August poll and now favors the GOP by 15 percentage points.

Voters also trusted Republicans to fight the wave of violent crime sweeping through cities and neighborhoods. Prominent Democrats running in competitive races — including Kathy Hochul, John Fetterman and Mandela Barnes — have all advocated for progressive criminal justice reforms that put criminals back on the street. Tough-on-crime Republicans will support law enforcement officers and keep violent criminals in jail to reduce crime rates.

Vote like your life depends on it, because it does!pic.twitter.com/RoDcYieOqH

— Lee Zeldin (@leezeldin) October 31, 2022

Bottom Line: Republicans are running — and winning — on fixing the issues that matter most to voters.