What made American voters vote for Donald Trump or Kamala Harris in the presidential election? National surveys carried out by several media outlets provide initial indications. Asked to choose between five questions, 35% of voters questioned in a national survey produced for NBC News said the state of American democracy was the main factor in their vote, while 31% cited the economy. Abortion (14%) and immigration (11%) came in third and fourth, while only 4% cited foreign policy, according to preliminary results from this exit poll.
If the campaign of the 60-year-old Democratic vice-president focused on the defense of democratic institutions, the rights of women and minorities, on the Republican side, the campaign of the 78-year-old former president focused on economy, inflation and immigration.
Economy for Trump, democracy for Harris
These choices of campaign themes were adapted to their electorate. The voters of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump do not in fact display the same priorities, indicates the NBC News channel. For supporters of the former Republican president, it is the economy (51%) which represents the first reason for voting. For those of the Democratic vice-president, however, it is democracy (56%). “The results of the exit polls may change overnight, as interviews and vote counting progress,” NBC News warned when publishing this investigation.
Other media outlets also published their first exit polls. An investigation conducted by AP VoteCast gives similar results to that of NBC News regarding voting reasons. The fate of democracy appears to be a top motivator for supporters of Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, according to AP VoteCast’s survey of more than 115,000 voters across the country. In contrast, Donald Trump’s supporters have focused primarily on immigration and inflation. Donald Trump promised that tariffs would bring back factory jobs and that an increase in domestic oil production would impact the economy and lower prices, recalls The Associated Press.
In detail, according to this survey conducted by AP VoteCast, nearly two-thirds of Harris voters said that the future of democracy was the most important factor in their vote. No other issue, whether high prices, the politics of abortion, the future of free speech in the country or the possibility of electing the first female president has been such an important factor for its supporters.
High prices and border with Mexico
Donald Trump voters are more motivated by economic issues and immigration. Nearly half said high prices were the main factor influencing their voting decision. About the same number of people said the same thing about the situation at the border between the United States and Mexico. Only a third of the Republican candidate’s voters said democracy was the most important factor in their vote.
Nearly half of his supporters said the economy and jobs were the top issues facing the country, while about a third said the top issue was immigration. Kamala Harris’ voting base, on the other hand, is focused on a broader range of issues, The Associated Press reports. About three in ten cited the economy as a major problem, while about two in ten cited abortion and about one in ten cited health care or climate change.