Surging cost of living tops voter concerns ahead of US midterms

FORT LAUDERDALE, United States - Soaring prices for gas, medicine and other cost of living essentials are preoccupying Americans as they start to cast their ballots ahead of next week’s midterm elections.A whopping 84% of voters who have cast their ballots early listed the economy as their biggest concern this election cycle, according to a recent Pew Research Centre survey.Kyler Daugherty, a 43-year-old health care worker, summed up the sentiment as he filled up his gas tank in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.“It’s ridiculous. I mean, everything’s gone up, from food to transportation to gas prices,” he told AFP.Fuel costs have skyrocketed around the world since the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran in February.US gas prices rose 9.1% in September alone, according to official figures, a headache for residents in a state like Florida, where most people rely on cars to get around.“It affects transportation, it affects goods, it affects everything,” Matthew Moore, a 63-year-old attorney, said after he cast his ballot early.“We transport a lot by truck. Air prices have gone up. My tickets home for Christmas have doubled since last year,” he said.Broken promisesUS President Donald Trump won reelection in 2024 in part because of his campaign promise to lower prices, which had also increased during the term of his predecessor Joe Biden.“I didn’t believe that promise then, and I probably won’t continue to believe (it),” said Melissa Reer, a 49-year-old social worker worried by her car and home insurance costs.“But I think there’s a lot more changes have to happen before prices can go down,” she said.US gas prices rose 9.1% in September alone - a headache for Americans who rely on cars to get around. PHOTO: REUTERSWilliam Galston, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution think-tank, said two of Trump’s decisions this term have directly contributed to cost pressures: launching the war on Iran and slapping tariffs on trade partners.“It’s within the president’s power to remove most of the tariffs that he’s imposed. It’s within the president’s power to end the war that he began,” Galston told AFP.For some voters, however, it’s too late.“My vote was cast based upon my feelings about how they’ve handled the stewardship that the voters have given them,” said Michael Childs, 62.The White House for its part insists that Trump’s policies are revitalising the US economy and making life more affordable for Americans.Basic expensesBut millions of households across the United States find it harder than ever to make ends meet.“The financial hardship is creeping up in America, particularly the middle class,” said Symeria Hudson, chief executive officer of United Way Miami, a non-profit non-partisan organisation focused on improving the health, education and financial well-being of local communities.United Way’s ALICE metric – which stands for an Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed person – measures working people whose income does not cover basic expenses, such as food, housing and health care.Nearly 41% of the 132 million households in the United States fall below the threshold.“We continue to encourage those policymakers to really understand the data,” Hudson told AFP.Many US voters are running out of ways to cut spending.“I’m literally cutting back on certain meds because I’m like, ‘I can’t afford them.’ I don’t know what to do next,” Daugherty said. AFP