Poll after poll shows — with mounting inflation, rising gas prices and an unstable stock market — that voters continue to see the economy as the overwhelmingly dominant issue ahead of November's midterms.
New findings from a Fox News poll of registered voters has some bad news for Democrats on that important issue, with President Biden and his party receiving low marks on an issue that 41% say is the most important for deciding their vote.
And now, in a spate of new ads, candidates and elected officials are looking to place blame for rising prices and a tough economy. Here are just a few examples:
Republicans Point To Democrats
Republicans are not the party in power, so it's a simple strategy to blame Democrats.
One ad from the American Action Network highlights a statement from Rep. Jahana Hayes at a town hall in March, where she tells viewers, "Democrats single-handedly saved the economy."
"Saved the economy?" a narrator asks. "U.S. inflation has now hit a new four-decade high," a news report points out later in the ad.
In Washington state, Republican Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler is using the issue to change the conversation as she faces a primary challenge from her right flank.
In a new ad out Thursday, a narrator tells viewers, "Gas prices are skyrocketing because of D.C. bureaucrats' war on American energy production. Jaime Herrera Beutler is fighting back."
Democrats try to change conversation
It's a trickier tightrope for Democrats to walk, being on the wrong side of most economic polling right now. Their candidates are highlighting their work at the state and federal level to combat rising prices.
Last week, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont ran an ad highlighting all of the taxes he's cut to give families in his state relief from high prices.
"When Governor Lamont cut the car tax, it felt like I had someone in my corner to help," one resident in the ad said, while others highlighted property and car tax cuts.
And some Democrats are trying to combine those personal stories about pandemic relief with a push to go on the offensive. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., is doing just that in a new ad that also accuses oil companies for taking advantage of consumers by inflating prices.
"He's taking on the big oil companies for ripping us off and he is willing to take on any powerful interests. He's fearless," a narrator said in a recent ad from Blumenthal's campaign.
