Even as the economy shows signs that inflation may be cooling, economic concerns still dominate the minds of Georgia voters according to a new poll reported in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

When asked their top concern, 26% of respondents told the AJC inflation/cost of living. Another 16% of all respondents replied Economy/Jobs bringing the total prioritizing economic concerns to 42%. Among Independent voters, that number is 49%.

“[The economy] seems to be doing well, but people don’t believe it,” said respondent Steve Dorvee, a Biden voter. Since President Biden took office, grocery prices have soared 30% while gas prices have jumped from $2.10 a gallon to $3.45, a 61% increase. Weekly paychecks have only risen about 14% during this time.

The real inflation costs may be understated. Shifts in buyer habits toward cheaper options may be masking the real costs used to measure inflation. Most inflation statistics do not take into account when consumers shift toward cheaper alternatives, such as switching from beef to chicken in grocery cost statistics, or withdraw from an economic sector altogether, such as opting to turn off the air conditioning.

Quinnipiac ran a similar poll in June finding that 29% of Georgia voters ranked the economy as their number one issue. In that same poll, 58% of respondents said Trump would do a better job handling the economy while only 38% trusted President Biden.
Similar sentiments have dominated national opinions since 2022 which saw the worst bout of inflation since 1982.