US midterm voters cite surging costs as top concern

Economic anxieties dominate early ballots

Eighty-four percent of Americans who have cast early ballots ahead of next week's midterm elections have cited the economy as their biggest concern this cycle, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey, as surging prices for fuel, medicine and daily essentials dominate voter anxieties across the country. US gas prices jumped 9.1 percent in September alone, according to official figures, compounding headaches for residents in car-dependent states like Florida.

Kyler Daugherty, a 43-year-old health care worker filling his tank at a Fort Lauderdale gas station, told AFP that household budgets have been shredded by relentless inflation. "It's ridiculous. I mean, everything's gone up, from food to transportation to gas prices," he said. Matthew Moore, a 63-year-old attorney who voted early, said the ripple effects touch every sector, noting that transportation by truck drives up goods prices while airfares have doubled since last year.

Broken promises

US President Donald Trump secured reelection in 2024 partly on promises to lower prices, yet many voters say those pledges remain unfulfilled as costs have climbed steeply since the previous administration's final term and global fuel markets were roiled by US-led strikes on Iran beginning in February. "I didn't believe that promise then and I probably won't continue to believe (it)," said Melissa Reer, a 49-year-old social worker worried about rising car and home insurance premiums, adding that deeper structural changes are needed before prices can fall.

Michael Childs, a 62-year-old voter, said his ballot was already cast based on the administration's handling of economic stewardship. William Galston, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution think tank, told AFP that two presidential decisions have directly fueled inflationary pressures: launching the war against Iran and imposing sweeping tariffs on trade partners. "It's within the president's power to remove most of the tariffs that he's imposed. It's within the president's power to end the war that he began," Galston said.

Households under pressure

Despite White House insistence that current policies are revitalizing the US economy and making life more affordable, millions of households find it harder than ever to make ends meet. Symeria Hudson, CEO of United Way Miami, told AFP that financial hardship is increasingly creeping up in America, particularly among the middle class.

Nearly 41 percent of the country's 132 million households fall below the organization's ALICE threshold — defined as asset-limited, income-constrained and employed — unable to afford basic expenses such as food, housing and health care, according to the nonprofit's data. "We continue to encourage those policy makers to really understand the data," Hudson said. Many voters have exhausted their options for cutting spending as they navigate impossible choices between essential needs. "I'm literally cutting back on certain meds because I'm like, 'I can't afford them.' I don't know what to do next," Daugherty said. Ballots continue to be cast nationwide ahead of next week's polling day.