WA Election Poll Shows Abortion, Inflation Top Of Voters' Minds

SEATTLE — Washington voters most often named abortion (26%) or inflation (22%) as their most important issue heading into the midterms, well ahead of crime (8%), climate change (7%) and COVID-19 (3%), according to a recent poll.

SurveyUSA polled 875 Washington adults in the days leading up to ballots being mailed out, narrowing the list to 719 who said they were registered to vote and 589 described as likely to vote in the November election.

The polling found more than a quarter of likely voters felt abortion was the most pressing issue of the election, followed closely by inflation. Nine other options garnered just single digits, including crime, guns, housing prices and homelessness.

Here are the top election issues among voters in WA, per SurveyUSA

Among all likely voters:

• 26%: Abortion
• 22%: Inflation
• 10%: Border Security
• 8%: Crime
• 7%: Climate Change
• 5%: Election Integrity
• 4%: Voting Rights
• 3%: COVID-19
• 3%: Guns
• 3%: Housing Prices
• 2%: Homelessness
• 1%: Foreign Policy

Just over half of voters said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate that supports federal abortion restrictions, compared to 22 percent who said they would be more likely to do so.

Pollsters also found that women surveyed were twice as likely as men to place abortion as their top issue. Republicans and independents most often identified inflation as their top issue, followed by border security.

The poll also asked likely voters if they felt the Supreme Court was "out of touch with the values and beliefs of most Americans." More than half of those surveyed said yes, including 67 percent of Democrats surveyed, while Republicans were evenly split on the question.

SurveyUSA's poll was sponsored by KING 5, The Seattle Times, the University of Washington's Center for an Informed Public and Washington State University's Murrow College of Communication. Readers can dive into the full results online.

Ballots are due back by mail, drop box, or vote centers by Nov. 8 at 8 p.m.