Affordability has become the defining issue of the US midterm elections, with candidates from both parties promising to reduce the cost of housing, food, fuel, childcare, healthcare and household energy.
Republicans are attempting to defend their economic record while facing pressure over the costs of war, past promises to tackle inflation and President Donald Trump’s shifting response to rising prices. Democrats, meanwhile, are seeking to turn voters’ economic concerns into a liability for the party in power.
Democrats still face criticism over the inflation surge that reached a four-decade high as the Covid-19 pandemic receded. Republicans continue to blame the Biden administration for today’s economic difficulties, even as the wider economy remains resilient, with 162,000 jobs added in August.
Cost-of-living pressures nevertheless rank among voters’ leading concerns across the political divide. Even households able to meet their immediate needs are worried about their financial future.
“Candidates are responding to what people are feeling, what people know on a day-to-day basis and what they see at the grocery stores or gas station. You can’t out-message their reality,” said Todd Belt, a professor at George Washington University’s Graduate School of Political Management.
He said candidates were now offering more specific proposals about how they would improve people’s finances, rather than relying only on broad campaign messages.
Housing and household bills at the centre of campaigns
With less than two months until the elections, housing has become a central target. Home prices have risen by around 50 per cent since the start of the pandemic, while about one in three US households is considered burdened by housing costs because more than 30 per cent of its income goes towards accommodation.
The median age of a first-time buyer reached 40 last year. Rents have fallen in some areas but remain above pre-pandemic levels, while the effects of a major bipartisan housing package passed by Congress in June are expected to take time to emerge.
Republicans and Democrats have both backed faster permit processing to reduce construction costs. They have also proposed restricting private equity firms from buying single-family homes or rental properties.
Candidates are taking their affordability campaigns directly to voters through visits to diners, breweries, steel mills and picket lines. Roy Cooper, the Democratic Senate candidate in North Carolina, has called his tour “Make Stuff Cost Less”, while Florida Republican gubernatorial nominee Byron Donalds is using the title “Defending the Florida Dream”.
In South Carolina, Democratic Senate nominee Dr Annie Andrews is holding events under the banner “Gas, Grits and Groceries”.
Food and fuel prices have become particularly visible symbols of household strain. Petrol prices, which rose during the Iran war, have climbed above an average of four dollars a gallon nationally, while diesel has reached a record high. Food prices were about 3 per cent higher year on year, according to the Consumer Price Index.
Trump’s tariffs have raised the cost of some imported food and agricultural equipment, while retaliatory tariffs imposed by trading partners have added to pressure on farmers and contributed to higher meat and produce prices.
Democratic candidates have linked some increases to what they describe as corporate greed. Their proposals include repealing tariffs, removing sales taxes from certain food items, scrutinising grocery mergers and tackling alleged price gouging. Some candidates have also called for temporary gas-tax suspensions.
Childcare and healthcare add to voter concerns
Childcare costs have also become a prominent campaign issue as government funding falls, operating expenses rise and providers face staff shortages. Families on median incomes in every state spend more than the 7 per cent of household income considered affordable by the Department of Health and Human Services.
Seven in ten Americans said raising children was unaffordable in a 2025 American Family Survey, an increase of 13 percentage points from the previous year. Democrats have proposed publicly funded universal childcare, while some Republicans favour reducing costs through tax credits.
Healthcare remains another major economic concern. Average annual premiums for employer-provided family cover reached about 27,000 dollars in 2025, with workers paying an average of 6,850 dollars towards the cost, according to KFF.
Insurance premiums for many Americans more than doubled after enhanced subsidies for coverage under the Affordable Care Act were allowed to expire. Changes to Medicaid eligibility contained in Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act could place further pressure on family budgets.
Parties offer competing explanations for utility bills
On energy costs, the two parties are advancing sharply different explanations and remedies. Republican candidates have proposed ending electrification mandates and giving priority to natural gas and other domestically produced fuels, while opposing renewable energy projects they regard as expensive.
Democrats have blamed energy-intensive data centres for some of the pressure on electricity bills. They have called for greater safeguards around their development and for expanded tax credits for wind, solar and other renewable sources to increase supply.
The competing proposals reflect a broader campaign struggle over who is responsible for the cost-of-living squeeze, as candidates try to match their political arguments with what voters encounter each week in their household bills.
