There's a lot weighing on voter's minds this election day.
From inflation to gun control and abortion rights, experts say the 2022 midterms are one for the history books.
NBC 5 gained some insight from viewers on how this is all setting the tone for the day and what is bringing them to the polls this year.
A survey was posted to this site in October with a big question: What's at stake for you this midterm?
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What ranked top of mind for North Texas may or may not be surprising. The number one issue viewers picked in our survey is the future of the country’s democracy, then the economy, abortion, and gun policy in that order.
We looked over the results with UT Arlington political science professor, Thomas Marshall.
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He says this differs slightly from the statewide polls where immigration – which motivates Republicans more than Democrats -- and the economy, topped the list.
“You look at the issues that are important to voters, a lot of it is what's been in the news lately,” he said. "The real pocket book issue, which motivates a lot of voters, is definitely the economy. Eight to 9% inflation is unprecedented in recent times."
But when you look at other surveys, you can see an interesting contrast between parties in some ways. A recent one conducted by Dallas-based Lisa W. Miller & Associates, a consumer insight and consulting firm, shows Republicans’ and Independents’ financial optimism has eroded over the last year, dropping significantly since this time last year.
But Democrats’ financial optimism has held steady, with some improvement since last fall.
Marshall teaches a class on campaigns, elections, and public opinion. He says presidents usually get judged on their performance and the state of public opinion in their first two years, which voters will take into account at the polls.
"Voter sentiment is unusually negative this year. And what's driving that is the inflation rate. It's hard for an unpopular incumbents party to deal with a high inflation rate or a weak economy that's dominating a lot of national news and a lot of voters experience,” he said. "I think what we're going to see are a slightly lower turnout and enthusiasm gap. And, if all the polls are correct, so far a pretty bad night for Democrats and a pretty good night for Republicans."
When voters head to the polls, keep in mind there are a lot of races in Texas, including many voters who might not know much about.
“There are long ballots in Texas judges are on the ballot, local officials are on the ballot, and lots of statewide candidates are on the ballot,” said Marshall. “There's very little news coverage, they don't have big advertising budgets, so it's not surprising that many voters rely on their best available shortcut when they're standing there at the polls – which is they vote for their own party's candidates.”
Do what research you can. But keep in mind, this is only the second election in Texas where straight-ticket voting is not available on the ballot anymore so be prepared to spend a little extra time at the polls on Tuesday.
