Voters on both sides of the aisle want change, new poll on eve of 2026 midterm finds
A voter casts their ballot inside a polling location on the first day of early voting for the midterm election in Atlanta, Georgia, US, on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026. Georgia's Senate race is seen as a must win for Democrats if they are to have any path
When it comes to the issues voters say matter most, a new poll from the Associated Press and the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago concluded that voters are "deeply frustrated" with President Donald Trump’s leadership, the AP reported.
Big picture view:
One third of voters overall say they’d like to see "a complete and total upheaval" in the midterm election results. Another 47% — almost half — want "substantial change."
For Democrats, those numbers are much higher: 50% want upheaval and 47% want substantial change. But even for Republicans, 13% want upheaval and 45% want substantial change.
What voters call ‘highest priorities’
The economy and the cost of living make up the two highest priorities for registered voters in the poll. Overall, 85% of voters called the economy "one of the most important issues," and another 13% called it "an important issue, but not one of the most important," the poll found. For cost of living, 84% said it was one of the most important, while 14% said it was important but not one of the most important issues.
Among Republicans, 80% and 76% ranked the economy and cost of living, respectively, as "one of the most important issues." That’s compared with 89% and 91%, respectively, for Democrats.
What they're saying:
Frustration extends to both sides of the aisles, with both Republicans and Democrats expressing their frustration to the AP.
"I’m kind of tired of sending people there and nothing gets done," Krista Kohles, a 70-year-old Republican from near Davey, Nebraska, said. "Nothing’s changing."
"The world is going backwards. We can barely afford anything," Diana Walker, a 65-year-old Democrat from Decatur, Georgia, said. "Everybody’s down. I don’t care if you’re a Democrat or Republican, we’re all catching hell."
Dig deeper:
How voters feel about Trump’s performance
Overall, 36% of voters approve of how Trump is handling his job and 64% disapprove.
But when you shift from overall to the economy, disapproval numbers jump. Almost three-quarters — 74% — disapprove of his handling of the economy and 79% disapprove of his handling of the cost of living.
About 8 in 10 registered voters claim to disapprove of how Trump is handling the cost of living and about 75% disapprove of his performance on the economy, the poll found.
When you look only at Republican voters, only 44% approve of Trump’s performance on the cost of living and 54% approve of his handling of the economy.
How important is your vote?
As the start of early voting in the 2026 midterm election looms for much of the country, Democrats seem more convinced about the importance of casting a ballot.
The poll found that among registered voters overall, 65% say voting is "extremely" important and 21% call it "very" important.
But 76% of Democrats, compared with 63% of Republicans, consider voting extremely important. Fifteen percent of Democrats said they thought voting is very important, while 27% of Republicans classified it that way.
Election Day is Nov. 3.
The Source: Information in this article came from the Associated Press and the AP-NORC at the University of Chicago. This story was reported from Orlando.