Going into the midterms, likely voters named the economy their top issue.
Voters headed to the polls Tuesday for the midterm elections that will determine which party holds the Senate and House of Representatives and could significantly impact President Joe Biden’s agenda for the final two years of his first term in the White House.
According to a recent ABC/Post poll, 80% of likely voters said the economy was their top issue in their vote for Congress and 77% said the same about inflation.
The Republican Party leads the Democratic Party by at least a dozen percentage points in trust to handle inflation and the economy, and by an even wider margin when it comes to handling crime. But, the Democratic Party leads when it comes to handling abortion.
While 62% of likely voters said abortion was their top issue; that comes 18 points behind the economy, 15 behind inflation and seven behind crime.
Even after the polls close and votes are counted Tuesday night, it could be days or even a week before final midterm election results are known in every state.
According to election experts and officials, this is normal because the results will be counted on each state’s separate calendar for canvassing early and mail-in votes. Ensuing recounts or challenges to results could further prolong the certification of votes.
“I would highly doubt that we would know who controls both chambers of Congress by the end of Election Day. I think we need to be prepared for an Election Day that will likely stretch over the week,” Ashley Koning, an assistant research professor and director of the Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling at Rutgers University, told ABC News.
