Immigration is now the top concern on voters’ minds, bumping inflation, which was previously at the top of the list, to second place, a new poll shows.
About 35% of voters said immigration was their top concern, while about 32% said inflation was their main concern, according to a Harvard CAPS-Harris poll released Monday.
The third biggest concern was “economy and jobs,” with 25% of people citing this as their top issue. The next biggest concerns were “crime and drugs,” and health care, which were both cited by 16% of voters. After those was the national deficit and national security, which tied at 14%, and then corruption and the environment, which were each cited by 13% of people.
Despite immigration jumping seven percentage points since last month’s poll, inflation was mentioned by the most people as the issue that affects them personally.
About 38% said inflation affects them directly, while only 17% said immigration does so, about three percentage points more than last month’s poll.
Inflation remains high at 3.4% in December, but it has come down from its year-over-year peak of 9.1% in June 2022. Prices for many everyday necessities, including groceries, remain much higher than they were in 2019 before the pandemic.
About three in five people say the economy is currently weak, and just under half of voters believe their financial situation is getting worse, according to the poll.
Only 7% of people said abortion and racial equity, two other controversial issues, affect them directly, the poll found.
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The crisis at the border has continued to cause headaches for the Biden administration and other Democrats.
More than 225,000 migrants were apprehended at the southern border in December, the highest monthly total since 2000, according to preliminary Homeland Security statistics.
Texas has sent more than 90,000 migrants to cities run by Democrats, including New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Denver, and Washington, D.C., causing those cities to strain their resources caring for the migrants.
Meanwhile, President Biden’s approval rating remains at a dismal 42%, the poll showed. His approval has not topped 46% since September 2021.
The president’s approval rating is especially low on the two top issues, immigration and inflation, with just 36% of people saying they strongly or somewhat approve of how he has handled inflation, and only 35% of people saying they approve of his handling of immigration, the poll showed.
The low numbers for Biden come as the presidential race heats up.
New Hampshire’s Republican primary on Tuesday night so far looks optimistic for former President Donald Trump, who appears likely to be the party’s nominee, meaning November’s general election would be a rematch between Trump and Biden.