White suburban women favor Republicans by 15 points, moving 27 points away from Democrats since August, a Wednesday Wall Street Journal Poll found.
The demographic of white suburban women, representing 20 percent of the electorate, is a key indicator of which party will control Congress after November 8.
Among their greatest concerns is the Democrats’ soaring inflation. Sixty-six percent of white suburban women say inflation is causing major financial hardship, up from 54 percent in August.
Fifty-four percent of white suburban women believe that President Joe Biden’s economy is in a recession. Seventy-four percent say his economy is headed down the wrong track, the poll outlined.
In contrast, abortion, the issue Democrats are most touting before the midterm election, is less relevant than the sagging economy. “It’s absolutely true that these women have shifted their gaze more on the economy than abortion,” Democrat pollster Molly Murphy told the Journal.
Overall, 74 percent of white suburban women said the nation is headed in the wrong direction. Sixty-five percent said so in August.
Biden’s approval rating among the demographic has also shrunk. In August, Biden’s approval rating was above water (51-48 percent). Wednesday’s polling shows it is now dramatically underwater (38-60 percent).
Former President Donald Trump is now more favored than Biden in a 2024 potential matchup among white suburban women.
“If the 2024 election were between Mr. Biden and former President Donald Trump, 41% of white suburban women said they would vote for Mr. Biden and 52% Mr. Trump. In August, 55% said Mr. Biden and 39% Mr. Trump,” the poll found.
Hillary Clinton has raised concerns that voters just don’t understand how important the 2022 midterm election is.
When she was asked in an interview on Tuesday with MSNBC host Joy Reid about whether she believed constituents understood what was at stake if Republicans regained control of Congress, Hillary said she did not think so.
“I think that with all of the noise that we’ve gotten in this election season I don’t think that people are really able to grasp that,” Clinton replied. “But more importantly, I’m not sure they really understand the threats to their way of life. They may think that whoever’s chairing a committee, you know, kind of abstract.”
The poll sampled 1,735 registered voters from October 22-26 with an 8.1 margin of error.
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.