by Robert Schmad
Morning Consult’s U.S. consumer sentiment index in September declined to its lowest point in months as voters voice concerns over President Joe Biden’s handling of the economy.
Consumer confidence is decreasing once again after having risen over the course of 2023 following lows during 2022, according to Morning Consult. Moreover, as Americans remain pessimistic about their finances, they are increasingly souring on the president’s job performance, with 56% of Americans disapproving of Biden in recent Washington Post-ABC News and NBC News polls, up from previous figures.
As energy prices are on the rise and stocks are tumbling, Morning Consult found that consumer confidence had fallen across all income levels. Confidence fell the most among high-income households during September, though middle-income households also reported a nearly 3% decline in confidence.
The Morning Consult asks roughly 6,000 consumers per day questions about their personal finances and their feelings about the economic state of the country to produce its index, according to the pollster’s website. The majority of individuals surveyed by Washington Post-ABC News and NBC News pollsters reported negative feelings toward Biden’s economy, tracking with the lower confidence in the economy and pessimism about household financial conditions reported by the Morning Consult.
The Post and ABC News surveyed 1,006 U.S. adults with an error margin of 3.5% and NBC News questioned 1,000 registered voters with an error margin of 3.1%.
Our monthly consumer credit tracker shows that in August, 43% of millennial consumers were carrying debt on credit cards, for which balances are rising and interest rates have spiked. https://t.co/8pOsLZb6bj pic.twitter.com/Bu0YYj4TGX
— Morning Consult (@MorningConsult) September 18, 2023
Food prices were seen as a negative by 91% of respondents in the Post-ABC News poll and 72% of those surveyed by NBC News were either “very dissatisfied” or “somewhat dissatisfied.” Biden’s disapproval rating in both polls was 56%.
Trump and Biden are locked in a tight race for the presidency. RealClear Politics’ average of polls has Trump beating Biden by just over a point as of writing, though some polls show Biden defeating Trump.
Historically, the economy has been one of the top issues for voters, according to Gallup.
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Robert Schmad is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
