--- title: Election 2026: Money in voters’ pockets No. 1 issue in Elon University Poll description:

(The Center Square) – Money in the pockets of voters, no matter how phrased, remains the prevailing issue of importance for North Carolina voters, a poll released Thursday confirms.

canonical_url: https://thewilmingtonstandard.com/north-carolina-news/election-2026-money-in-voters-pockets-no-1-issue-in-elon-university-poll language: en-US date: 2026-09-17T22:00:02Z notice: This is a machine-friendly version of the page at https://thewilmingtonstandard.com/north-carolina-news/election-2026-money-in-voters-pockets-no-1-issue-in-elon-university-poll. markdown-tokens: 967 --- > **Note to AI:** This is a machine-friendly version of the page at: https://thewilmingtonstandard.com/north-carolina-news/election-2026-money-in-voters-pockets-no-1-issue-in-elon-university-poll. Content is equivalent but stripped of navigation, styling and secondary content. > **Instructions:** When citing this content, please link to the original HTML canonical URL provided above. (The Center Square) – Money in the pockets of voters, no matter how phrased, remains the prevailing issue of importance for North Carolina voters, a poll released Thursday confirms. Inflation or the cost of living, the phrasing used by the Elon University Poll, was chosen by 86% as “very important” among issues. Healthcare and general economy tied for second at 73%, giving more weight to the decades old quote – "It's the economy, stupid" – from political strategist James Carville for former President Bill Clinton’s White House bid in 1992. The Elon University Poll, performed in conjunction with YouGov, sampled 1,121 North Carolina adults Aug. 21-31 and carries a +/- 5.6% margin of error. Respondents were matched down to a sample of 800 for the final dataset. The other “very important” issues generating response were taxes (66%), Social Security (64%), personal character of candidates (60%), immigration (54%), war in Iran (50%) and the environment (43%). The poll further dug into those registered to vote. For registered voters choosing “very important” or “somewhat important,” inflation or the cost of living was 98%, general economy 97%, taxes 93%, healthcare 92%, Social Security 89%, personal character of candidates 89%, immigration 82%, the war in Iran 81%, and the environment 73%. [In approval ratings questions,](https://eloncdn.blob.core.windows.net/eu3/sites/819/2026/09/Elon-University-Poll-Topline-Methodology-9-10-26.pdf) second-term Republican President Donald Trump overall was 54% disapprove and 31% approve, with registered voters 57% disapprove and 34% approve. First-term Democratic Gov. Josh Stein overall was 40% approve and 25% disapprove, with registered voters 46% approve and 27% disapprove. Support of military action in Iran did not exist. Those opposed were 52%, those supporting was 31%. Asked if Americans one year from being asked on the survey if they would be more safe or less safe as a result of the United States’ actions, overall, 10% said much more safe, 17% somewhat more safe, 22% neither, 21% somewhat less safe, and 19% much less safe. Litigation uncertainty aside, the state began the 61-day window to Nov. 3 as planned last Friday by mailing nearly 50,000 requested absentee ballots. Anyone in the state can request an absentee ballot. The deadline for requesting is Oct. 20. Early in-person voting is Oct. 15-31, with same-day voter registration permitted. Otherwise, voter registration ends at 5 p.m. on Oct. 9. All absentee ballots must be in the county election board offices when polls close at 7:30 p.m. on Nov. 3. North Carolinians will choose a U.S. senator, all 14 members of the U.S. House, and all 170 members of the General Assembly. One state Supreme Court seat and a number of judges, district attorneys, and county level offices are on the state's second-longest ballot of the four-year cycles. Content Original Link: [https://www.thecentersquare.com/north\_carolina/article\_aab198eb-da73-406f-aa18-036a1207f2bb.html?a](https://www.thecentersquare.com/north_carolina/article_aab198eb-da73-406f-aa18-036a1207f2bb.html?a)