There is no shortage of pressing challenges facing the nation \u2014 the debt limit, inflation, the southern border, and surging violent crime rates are just a few.
\nYet, recent polling by Schoen Cooperman Research reveals a precipitous drop in Americans\u2019 confidence in our government, the two major political parties and each side\u2019s ability to solve the nation\u2019s problems.
\nJust 28 percent of registered voters we surveyed believe the country is headed in the right direction \u2014 down from 41 percent in December 2021 \u2014 while nearly two-thirds (63 percent) say the U.S. is on the wrong track.
\nFurther, a majority of the electorate has an unfavorable view of the current Democratic president (52 percent), as well as of the former Republican president (52 percent), who could well face each other in 2024.
\nOur data ultimately underscores the electoral and political challenges facing both parties ahead of next year\u2019s elections: While Democrats are viewed as inept and ineffective, Republicans are seen as extreme and self-interested.
\nThe electorate\u2019s pessimistic outlook vis-\u00e0-vis the state of the country certainly doesn\u2019t bode well for Democrats, who still control both the White House and the Senate, and held a majority in the House until just one month ago.
\nAccordingly, our latest poll found that voters have little faith in Democrats\u2019 ability to address key issues: the economy, immigration and inflation. Moreover, trust in Democrats has either declined or remained stagnant since our polling in March 2022 and December 2021, signaling that the party is struggling to get its message across.
\nThis is especially true in the context of the economy and inflation, which are arguably Biden\u2019s and Democrats\u2019 greatest political vulnerabilities, as the electorate broadly trusts Republicans (49 percent) over Democrats (36 percent) to manage the economy.
\nVoters continue to prioritize the economy and inflation as their top issue priorities, yet only one-quarter rate the current state of the economy as \u201cexcellent\u201d or \u201cgood,\u201d and 71 percent believe inflation has worsened over the past year, despite the Federal Reserve imposing historic interest rate hikes. Yet, ironically, those same rate hikes may bring about the recession that 85 percent of voters are concerned the U.S. will enter in the next year.
\nBeyond the economy, roughly two-thirds of voters believe crime and gun violence have worsened over the past year (65 percent) and that the migrant crisis at the southern border has worsened (62 percent).
\nFurther, voters widely trust Republicans over Democrats to lower the crime rate (49 percent to 31 percent) and slightly trust the GOP more to address immigration (42 percent to 38 percent).
\nThis is not to say that voters believe that Republicans have the will or the ability to lead more effectively than Democrats. In fact, voters are dubious that House Republicans are interested in governing at all.
\nWhen asked to identify what House Republicans\u2019 top priorities will be, a plurality (39 percent) cites investigating Biden\u2002and other Democrats, while the second-most-cited priority, cutting federal spending ranks in a distant second place (24 percent).
\nThe Republican Party\u2019s disappointing performance in the midterm elections underscores the risks to their viability if the party continues prioritizing political vendettas and personal agendas over governing. Despite an overwhelmingly favorable backdrop in the midterms, the GOP failed to take control of the Senate and was barely able to secure a majority in House.
\nThus, if Republicans continue fanning the flames of extremism, recent history suggests that voters will reject the GOP at the polls, even if they are unhappy with Democratic policies.
\nBut at the same time, Democrats shouldn\u2019t take for granted their overperformance in the midterms \u2014 which was more the result of voters rejecting the far-right, rather than embracing Democratic policies \u2014 as the party clearly faces challenges due to their perceived mishandling of the economy, crime and immigration.
\nThere is clearly a political incentive for both parties to compromise with the other side and advance real solutions to the many urgent matters facing the country, and the first and foremost concern should be averting a default on U.S. debt.
\nWhichever party voters perceive to be impeding the work of government will be the party that faces severe electoral consequences in 2024.
\nDouglas E. Schoen and Carly Cooperman are pollsters and partners with the public opinion company Schoen Cooperman Research based in New York. They are co-authors of the book, \u201cAmerica: Unite or Die.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thehill<\/p>\n
Tags\uff1apolitical<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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