WASHINGTON — Health care and immigration were high on voters’ minds as they cast ballots in the midterm elections, according to a wide-ranging survey of the electorate conducted by the Associated Press.
AP VoteCast also shows that a majority of voters considered President Trump a factor in their votes. The survey included interviews with more than 115,000 voters nationwide. Here are some early takeaways:
HEALTH CARE AND IMMIGRATION
Health care was at the forefront of many voters’ minds: 27 percent named it as the most important issue facing the country in this year’s midterm elections. Immigration was not far behind, with 23 percent naming it as the most important issue.
Those who voted for a Democratic House candidate were more likely to say health care was their top issue, while those who voted for a Republican were more likely to name immigration.
Others considered the economy (19 percent), gun policy (8 percent) and the environment (7 percent) the top issue.
IS IT ALL ABOUT TRUMP?
Nearly two-thirds of voters said Trump was a reason for their vote, while about a third said he was not. Nearly 4 in 10 voters said they cast their ballots to express opposition to the president, while a quarter of voters said they voted to express support.
THE ECONOMY
Voters have a positive view of the state of the national economy – about two-thirds said the condition of the economy is excellent or good, compared with a third who said it’s not good or poor.
WRONG DIRECTION FOR U.S.
A majority of voters overall said the country is headed in the wrong direction. About 6 in 10 voters said it is headed in the wrong direction.
HEALTH CARE
A quarter of voters said the Affordable Care Act, often called “Obamacare,” should be repealed entirely. About another quarter said parts of the law should be repealed. Around a third of voters said it should be expanded, and about 1 in 10 preferred it be left as it is.
About 6 in 10 voters said it should be the responsibility of the federal government to make sure that all Americans have health care coverage.
SUPREME COURT
About three-quarters of voters said the debate over Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination was very or somewhat important to their vote. Those who said it was very important to their vote were more likely to support the Democratic candidate. The Republican-led Senate confirmed Kavanaugh after a California professor accused him of sexual assault when both were in high school. Kavanaugh denied the allegations.
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