The midterm elections will fundamentally alter the balance of power in Washington, but the results did little to alter public views of the economy, neither crushing consumer confidence among Republicans nor lifting it among Democrats.
The November New York Times|SurveyMonkey poll was fielded before, during, and after the 2018 midterm elections on November 6th, with overall results hardly budging before or after the results were known.
In our October survey, college-educated white suburban women anticipated a leftward shift in politics. More than half (53 percent) said they would prefer Democrats to control Congress, while 32 percent preferred control to remain in Republican hands and 13 percent expressed no preference. More than four in 10 (42 percent) said they were “definitely” voting for the Democratic candidate in their local House race, with just 18 percent planning to “definitely” vote Republican.
These numbers bore themselves out. Post-Election Day, 53 percent of college-educated suburban white women said they voted for the Democratic candidate in their local House race, compared with just 37 percent who said they voted for the Republican.
Click through all the results in the interactive toplines below.
Read more about our polling methodology here.
Question text:
Which one of the following issues matters MOST to you right now?
Do you approve or disapprove of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president? Would you say that you and your family are better off or worse off financially than you were a year ago? Now looking ahead - do you think that a year from now you and your family will be better off financially, worse off financially, or just about the same as now? Now turning to business conditions in the country as a whole - do you think that during the next 12 months we'll have good or bad times financially?
Looking ahead, which would you say is more likely to take place in the next five years for the country as a whole: Thinking about the big things people buy for their homes - such as furniture, a stove, a television… Generally speaking, do you think now is a good or bad time for people to buy major household items?
Do you approve or disapprove of the tax law that was passed in December 2017? Do you approve or disapprove of a tariff—a tax—on steel and aluminum that is imported to the U.S. from other countries? How would you rate the housing market in your area? Are you planning to buy a home in the next 12 months? Why are you considering buying a home? Which do you think is a better approach to the problems facing some U.S. automakers? Why are you not considering buying a home in the next year? In the 2018 election for U.S. House of Representatives in your district, did you vote for the: In the 2018 election for the U.S. House of Representatives, will you vote… Do you own or rent your home?
