ORLANDO, Fla. — In 1992 Bill Clinton’s campaign was looking to define its message when advisor James Carville coined the phrase, “it’s the economy, stupid.”
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Now, three decades later it’s the economy again — more specifically, inflation.
“Inflation is fine if you don’t notice it. The issue right now is that voters are seeing it in their daily lives,” says Dr. Michael Binder of the University of North Florida. “It’s not that things used to be less expensive years ago, it’s that they are seeing that this product was a dollar cheaper a week ago.”
Polling from UNF has consistently found that the economy is the main issue for voters in 2022, far outpacing social issues including abortion.
“This is what is motivating voters when we talk to them,” says Binder.
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“We asked folks, ‘Hey, is it going to be primarily pocketbook issues or social issues that determine how you vote this fall? Seventy-five percent said pocketbook issues,” says Dr. Stephen Neely of the University of South Florida’s School of Public Affairs.
With the midterms less than a month away, both parties are trying to position themselves on the issue, with Republicans hammering Democrats for soaring prices and Democrats pointing out that the GOP opposed the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act.
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