Most voters in swing House districts fault Trump trade moves for high prices | Trump tariffs
As Donald Trump continues to impose tariffs on major trading partners, a poll from the Democratic campaign arm finds that a majority of voters in districts likely to decide his majority in the House of Representatives blame the president’s trade policies for increasing the cost of living.
The poll, shared exclusively with the Guardian, also confirms that many voters are disgruntled with the One Big Good Bill, the GOP’s legislative achievement signed earlier this year that enacted Trump’s tax policies, countered his crackdown on immigrants and scaled back the Medicaid health insurance program for poor and disabled Americans.
“The public is turning against House Republicans and fed up with their broken promises. Costs are rising, the GOP health crisis is hurting millions of Americans, and the public hates their disastrous economic agenda. Voters are ready for change and willing to give House Democrats the majority back in 2026,” said Viet Shelton, spokesman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), which conducted the poll.
The committee surveyed 1,000 likely voters in 61 battleground states earlier this month and found that 61 percent of respondents blamed Trump’s tariffs for raising prices, while a 52 percent majority of voters opposed the One Big Beautiful Bill.
Trump won the precincts polled last year by an average of 4%, but Democrats still trailed the GOP with 47% of the overall vote ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, to 43%. The DCCC said the four-point split was higher than a similar battleground poll it conducted in November 2017, ahead of the 2018 midterm elections in which Democrats won 41 seats in the House and regained the majority.
The survey was conducted between Oct. 2 and 6, immediately following the government shutdown after Democratic and Republican lawmakers failed to agree on legislation to continue funding. The DCCC found that 43 percent of respondents blamed Trump and Republican lawmakers for the disruption in operations.
Trump has imposed tariffs on a number of imported goods, including those from China. As of Sept. 25, average U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports reached 58%, while Chinese tariffs reached 33%, according to analysis by the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
Trump also threatened to impose 100% tariffs on Chinese goods in retaliation for Beijing imposing restrictions on exports of rare earth minerals, which are key to many high-tech components.
