Voters Worry About Gas Prices, Crime While Mainstream Media Frets About Climate Change: Poll

A recent poll by Rasmussen Reports shows that while rising prices and living costs are some of the biggest midterm concerns for American voters, the mainstream media continues to fret over climate change.

The poll, conducted Aug. 17–18, found rising gas prices to be the number one voter issue for the midterm elections, with 92 percent of respondents saying they were concerned and 68 percent saying they were “very concerned.” The economy in general was the next major issue, with 91 percent saying they were concerned.

Violent crime, energy policy, and inflation rounded out the top five most worrying issues for voters.

None of the top five voter concerns were listed in Rasmussen’s roundup of the mainstream media’s top five issues for the midterms, indicating that major media houses are largely ignorant about the priorities of most voters. The top concern for mainstream media was climate change, followed by the war in Ukraine, the Jan. 6 investigation, COVID-19, and LGBTQ issues.

The list of top issues reported by American voters are problems that are impacting their present-day lives. Gas prices, though down from their peak in June, remain elevated at a national average of $3.88 per gallon as of Aug. 24.

Annual inflation in July came in at 8.5 percent, close to the four-decade high of 9.1 percent registered in June. Annual inflation has remained above 7 percent throughout 2022. Americans are paying more for food, shelter, and other daily necessities. An Aug. 12 report by the Joint Economic Committee Republicans found that Americans are spending about $717 more per month due to inflation.

Defining a ‘Recession’

U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter fell by 0.9 percent, following a 1.6 percent decline in the first quarter. Two consecutive quarters of negative growth is generally accepted as the benchmark to declare

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases