Fox News Voter Analysis: Is This a Change Election? Top issues and mood of the country as voters give their opinion

While the nation waits election resultsVoters are weighing in on the issues and whether former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris will bring the kind of change they seek. Because it seems like change is very much what they want.

Economic concerns and concerns about the future are important considerations as they make their choice in this year’s election.

Preliminary data from the Fox News Voter Analysis, a survey of more than 110,000 voters nationwide, provides an early look at voters’ mood as they vote.

This year, more voters went to the polls believing the country was on the wrong track (70%) than in 2020 (60%). And voters across the country are looking for something different: most want a change in the way the country is run, with a quarter (26%) looking for complete and total unrest.

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Voters’ frustrations with the Biden administration were clearly visible, as more than five in ten people disapprove of the work he does.

In contrast, voters had net positive memories of Donald Trump’s time in office, with more than half approving of the job he did as president. Four years ago, 47% approved of the job Trump had done.

This desire for change is accompanied by divided views on the role of government. Just over half say the government should do more to solve the country’s problems, a modest decline from 2020 (57%). Almost as many people (45%) believe that the government does too many things that are better left to the private sector.

Voters say the economy is by far the most important issue facing the country, followed distantly by immigration and abortion.

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Four in ten voters say inflation was the most important factor in their vote.

Voters rate the economy bleakly: two-thirds rate the economy as fair (40%) or downright poor (23%). Four years ago, in the depths of a coronavirus-induced recession, just 14% said economic conditions were bad.

In a sign of inflation’s economic toll, about three times as many voters feel they have fallen behind financially than have gotten ahead. Four years ago, about the same number said they were making progress, but the number who said they were falling behind was just 18% in 2020.

Being able to afford food (67%) was the top budget concern for more voters than healthcare (54%), housing (51%) and gas (48%).

On balance, voters had a slightly more favorable view of Harris (48% favorable, 49% unfavorable) as a person than Trump (46% favorable, 52% unfavorable). The same is true at the vice presidential level: Tim Walz’s views (43% favorable, 41% unfavorable) were slightly better than J.D. Vance’s views (42% favorable, 46% unfavorable). Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who ended his third-party presidential bid and endorsed Trump in August, was less popular than the two running mates (41% favorable, 43% unfavorable).

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The spotlight is not kind to Biden, whose sharply negative favorability rating (40% favorable, 57% unfavorable) is down significantly from four years ago (50% favorable, 48% unfavorable).

Methodology statement FNVA 2024:

The Fox News Voter Analysis, conducted in partnership with the Associated Press, provides a comprehensive look at voting behavior, opinions and preferences as America votes. It is based on surveys of the American electorate conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago with voting results from The Associated Press. For the 2024 general election, FNVA results are based on a probability sample of registered voters from state voter files, samples of self-identified registered voters from a probability-based national panel, and samples of self-identified registered voters from opt-in online panels. The FNVA survey of the American electorate was conducted in all fifty states from October 28 to November 5, ending at the close of voting on Election Day.

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