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Wednesday, December 25, 2024

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Rural voters in TX go to polls with 3 concerns

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Friday, October 18, 2024   

Rural voters in Texas and across the U.S. tend to be swing voters and may decide the outcome of this year's presidential election.

According to a new poll from the Rural Democracy Initiative, their biggest concerns are the economy, threats to democracy, and abortion.

Sarah Jaynes, executive director of the initiative, said voters want elected leaders to make lowering costs and increasing wages for working people a priority, not cutting taxes for the rich or deregulating corporations.

"They're very focused on working people as kind of the heroes of the economy, and concerns that impact working-class people," Jaynes reported. "Rural people and small town folks are more likely to be working class. About 70 % of rural folks are working class."

The poll was conducted between Aug. 28 and Sept. 8 in 10 battleground states. Early voting in Texas starts Oct. 21.

Nearly eight in 10 rural voters are firmly against banning abortion. Jaynes noted it is the same number pollsters saw in a similar survey in March.

"They either said that they were against abortion themselves, but didn't think that the government should control a woman's choice in the matter," Jaynes observed. "Or they just thought that abortion should be legal."

The poll showed former President Donald Trump with an 18-point lead over Vice President Kamala Harris among likely rural voters, down from a 26% lead in March, before Harris announced her campaign. Jaynes added the big takeaway for both major parties should be rural voters want to see worker-centered policies.

"People want to make sure that they have the tools and the opportunities to create a good life for themselves and their families," Jaynes emphasized. "That shows up in their support for child care and health care."


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