Whether or not you think the economy is currently doing well isn’t solely based on financial indicators, as a new poll has found that political affiliation is the No. 1 factor in how Americans view the economy.
The new poll comes from CBS News and YouGov. It found that while more than half of Democrats (52%) would classify the current economy as good, less than a quarter of Republicans (15%) would do the same.
Overall, the poll found that 29% of respondents viewed the economy as good, while 65% described it as “bad.”
However, the pollsters noted that the trend of viewing the economy as good or bad, depending on which political party is in control of the White House, is not new to this presidency or the last, but a trend seen since the turn of the century.
According to CBS News, for much of the past two decades, Democrats have viewed the economy more positively when a Democratic president was in office, and Republicans viewed it more favorably when a Republican president was in office.
The pollsters cited polls they ran throughout the 90s, which showed that the difference between Republicans and Democrats saying the economy was good usually averaged 11 points. Since then, it has nearly tripled to 30 percentage points.
As for today, the poll asked respondents how they are doing financially, to which 13% said they were getting ahead, 52% said they were staying stagnant, and 35% reported falling behind.
When asked if their work income was keeping pace with the record inflation that hit the country throughout the last year, 30% said it was, while 70% said it wasn’t.
The poll helps show the growing frustrations surrounding the economy, regardless of political affiliation.
Respondents were asked to describe the U.S. economy in one word, and 61% said “struggling.” Other words to top the list included “uncertain,” “unfair,” and “punishing.”
Words lower down included “rebounding” and “expanding.”
Related
Related
