A recently released poll from the University of Georgia School of Public and International Affairs conducted for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reveals that 42% of all voters and 49% of independents are primarily concerned about economic issues. More than half of respondents believed cost of living to be the best indicator of the state of the economy and 68% of those polled said America was currently “on the wrong track.”
It was 1992 when President Bill Clinton’s political strategist James Carville first uttered the words “it’s the economy, stupid.” Now, 32 years later, Georgia voters still rank the economy as the number one issue influencing their vote in November.
Notably, 56% of those polled disapproved of President Biden’s job performance.
The poll was conducted in early June prior to the Presidential debates so Biden’s health was not a key issue addressed in the poll.
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Cost of living has been increasing amid inflation rates reaching a 40 year high and polling has been relatively stable on economic issues since inflation peaked in 2022.
Over the past four years, weekly paychecks have risen approximately 14%, but the costs of common goods and services have far outpaced wage growth. Since 2019, housing prices have increased significantly throughout the state while the cost of groceries is up over 30%. Gas gas prices have seen a similar steep incline rocketing up 61% from $2.10 a gallon to $3.45.
Statistics such as these only tell half the story. Largely excluded from these numbers are changes in consumer habits, including switching to cheaper options or withdrawing from a product all together. This includes buying cheaper varieties of meat or running the air conditioner less – if at all – in the summer. With these exclusions, the true cost of living may be even higher than these statistics show.
This poll falls right in line with June’s Quinnipiac poll. According to Quinnipiac, 29% of Georgia respondents ranked the economy as their number one voting issue. That poll also showed only 38% of Georgia respondents believed President Biden was the best choice to handle the economy compared to 58% saying Trump would be a better choice.
