8 in 10 Voters Want Major Change, AP-NORC Poll Finds. Washington Should Listen.
A new AP-NORC poll finds 8 in 10 voters want substantial change or upheaval, the economy tops their concerns and 36% approve of President Trump's job performance.
With less than three weeks until the Nov. 3 midterms, a new poll finds American voters in a sour, restless mood, and the president's numbers are low.
The survey from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, released Thursday, found that 8 in 10 voters say the country needs "substantial change" or "complete and total upheaval" in how it is run. Only 1 in 10 said they feel optimistic about the state of American politics.
The numbers
The poll was conducted Oct. 8-12 with 1,119 adults and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.9 percentage points, according to AP-NORC.
The economy dominates. Eighty-five percent of voters named it one of the most important issues for their vote, and 84% said the same about the cost of living. Health care followed at 69%, then the war with Iran at 64%. Immigration and crime were each top issues for 45%. Artificial intelligence drew 35%, and transgender issues 12%.
President Trump's job approval among voters stood at 36%, with 64% disapproving. Crime was his strongest issue, with 45% approving. About three-quarters disapproved of his handling of the economy (74%) and the cost of living (79%), and about two-thirds disapproved of his foreign policy.
About a third of voters viewed Trump (35%), Vice President JD Vance (35%) and the Republican Party (36%) favorably. Four in 10 viewed the Democratic Party favorably.
Asked who should control Congress, 47% favored Democratic control of the House and 46% Democratic control of the Senate. Thirty-eight percent wanted Republicans to keep both chambers, and 15% were unsure, with independents most likely to be undecided.
The appetite for change crosses party lines. About half of Democrats and 4 in 10 independents said they want upheaval. Republicans were less likely to want upheaval, but 45% said the country needs substantial change.
What conservatives should hear
Polls are snapshots, not verdicts. This one has a margin of error near 4 points, and turnout will decide the actual result.
But it would be foolish to wave this away. The poll is not mainly about culture war fights. Only 12% of voters call transgender issues a top priority. What voters care about is what they pay at the grocery store and the pump. Inflation hit 3.7% in September, as Dock Line reported in our inflation coverage, and families feel it every week.
The bright spot for the president is crime, which AP-NORC calls one of his stronger issues. That suggests voters still trust conservatives on law and order. They need to see the same seriousness on prices.
Democrats should not celebrate either. Only 4 in 10 voters view their party favorably, and half of all voters are pessimistic about the future of both parties. The public is not in love with the opposition. It is tired.
Seek the welfare of the city
For Christians, a poll like this is a reminder of where hope belongs. Upheaval rarely delivers what people expect from it. "Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it," says Psalm 127:1.
That does not mean believers sit out. When the exiles in Babylon were tempted to despair, God told them to "seek the peace of the city" where they lived, "for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace" (Jeremiah 29:7). Christians should vote, pray for their leaders and hold every candidate to account on the things that touch ordinary families: honest prices, safe streets and the sanctity of life.
Leaders in both parties should read the same message in these numbers. Voters do not want slogans. They want relief, and they want someone to tell them the truth about how to get it.
Hero photo: Architect of the Capitol via Wikimedia Commons, public domain (U.S. government work), cropped and resized.
