Much of the post-election discussion has centered on the impact of inflation, including some mentions on the importance of high food prices. A new survey confirms that the cost of groceries was a major issue that helped Donald Trump win the election.
Trump voters were significantly more concerned about the cost of groceries and eating out than Harris voters, according to the latest Gardner Food and Agricultural Policy Survey, which is operated by policy specialists at the University of Illinois and Purdue University.
When asked what issue area was most important to them during the election, about 60 percent of participants who voted for Trump selected either cost of living/inflation (33 percent) or the economy more generally (27.8 percent). These two areas were also important for participants who voted for other candidates, but at lower rates. Those who voted for Trump also reported that inflation affected them at higher rates in the month before the election than those who voted for other candidates and, in particular, indicated they felt inflation most acutely with grocery prices.
Additionally, as voter turnout has a large impact on election results, we highlight the perceptions of participants who did not vote. Cost of living/inflation was also the most important issue to 44.4 percent of participants who did not vote, and this group reported higher average impacts of food price inflation. Here, we find that the most common reasons participants gave for not voting in the election were either that they did not like any of the candidates or that they felt their vote did not matter.
