Voters' Focus on Health Care, Climate Falls

The coronavirus has caused a dramatic shift in the priorities of U.S. voters, with both presidential candidates hyper-focused on vaccine efforts and a quick economic recovery. A new poll shows top policy platforms from both parties have fallen by the wayside since February in favor of pandemic-related issues.

According to a recent health tracking poll from KFF, the focus on health care, foreign policy and climate change have all dipped substantially since February. Health care, which was the top U.S. voter consideration for president, now trails other issues involving COVID-19, the economy, race relations and criminal justice. Foreign policy and climate change have fallen even further, going from top considerations in February to near-zero in September.

With the U.S. presidential election less than 50 days away, the coronavirus, economy and policing protests have become the primary considerations for voters. Those are unlikely to change in the next two months, and both Trump and Biden have been quick to frame their candidacy around the fight for who will save the country from COVID-19 and restore economic growth heading into 2021. While a wide array of topics captured the public’s attention to begin the year, the race for the White House is looking like it’ll come down to voters’ faith for each candidates’ ability to solve one or two essential issues.