After the midterm elections, voters will begin looking toward the 2028 presidential race. What do they want from the next president?
Most Republicans want the next president to continue Donald Trump’s policies, though fewer want the same approach and style. Nearly four in 10 MAGA Republicans say Trump’s successor should mirror both. About half want the policies to continue, but not necessarily the style. Non-MAGA Republicans are less interested in a similar style: 45% favor continuing Trump’s policies, while around 15% want a president who acts like him.
Independents largely want a break from both. Six in 10 say the next president should move away from Trump’s policies and his style. Few Democrats want either to carry over.
Democrats have won control of both chambers of Congress, and Trump’s approval rating stands at 39%. Still, a sizable group of voters remains loyal to him and could shape the 2028 contest. Half of voters want a successor who neither follows his policies nor adopts his style. Another 26% want the policies continued, while 12% want both the policies and style carried forward.
Across party lines, voters say improving the economy should be the country’s leading priority over the next five years. Six in 10 say their finances are holding steady, while about three in 10 feel they are falling behind. Roughly one in 10 say they are getting ahead. People who are dissatisfied with their finances or feel they are slipping are more likely to name the economy as the most pressing issue.
For newly elected officials taking office in 2027, grocery prices top voters’ immediate concerns: three in 10 want officials to tackle them first. Around two in 10 prioritize gas prices, and a similar share point to healthcare and prescription drug costs. Housing costs come next, with slightly fewer voters naming them, while about one in 10 want attention paid to electricity and other utility bills.
Voters are nearly split on whether the country’s best days lie ahead or are already behind it. Their outlook seems closely tied to their finances. About two-thirds of those getting ahead financially feel optimistic about the future. By contrast, roughly two-thirds of those falling behind believe the country’s best days are in the past.
Views on other priorities vary by party. About one in five Democrats name access to affordable healthcare as a key concern. A similar share of Republicans say protecting people from government overreach matters most. Among independents, around one in 10 cite healthcare affordability, and about the same proportion point to government overreach.
Voters are divided over how artificial intelligence will affect the U.S. economy over the next decade. About four in 10 expect it to do harm, while three in 10 anticipate benefits. One in 10 think it will make little difference, and around two in 10 are unsure. Roughly four in 10 also expect AI to have a negative effect on the environment and the arts and entertainment industry.
About half of voters want significant changes to the way the country is governed. Party affiliation influences both how much change people want and which parts of government they think need it most. Democrats are roughly three times as likely as Republicans to call for a complete overhaul. Half of democratic socialists favor that level of upheaval, compared with about one in 10 MAGA Republicans.
In the 2024 presidential election survey, most Republican voters said they wanted substantial change or a complete overhaul. Now that Republicans control the White House and both chambers of Congress, they appear less eager for major changes.
Overall, four in 10 voters believe Congress needs substantial reform. That includes three-quarters of MAGA Republicans and half of non-MAGA Republicans. Democrats are less likely to call for changes to Congress, though half say the executive branch should be improved. Few voters in either party want constitutional changes. Democrats are more likely than Republicans or independents to say the Supreme Court needs reform.
Voters across party lines support term limits for members of Congress and Supreme Court justices. Democrats favor eliminating the Electoral College, while Republicans and independents are less supportive. Most Republicans favor restricting mail voting to people who cannot vote in person. MAGA Republicans are more likely than non-MAGA Republicans to support that restriction, at 63% compared with 40%. Democrats oppose it, including those who support democratic socialism.
The growth of artificial intelligence has also prompted concerns about the data centers needed to support it. Voters remain split on whether AI will help or harm the country over the next decade. Democrats are more likely to expect negative effects, while Republicans more often anticipate benefits.
Among Republicans, MAGA voters are more optimistic about AI than non-MAGA Republicans. Forty-five percent of MAGA Republicans think the technology will help the U.S. compete internationally, and another four in 10 say it will do more to help the economy.
Democrats who support democratic socialism and those who do not are similarly likely to believe AI will benefit parts of American society. Still, supporters of democratic socialism are more likely than other Democrats to think the technology will do more harm than good.
Six in 10 voters are very or extremely concerned that data centers could raise utility prices in the communities where they are built. About half worry about their effects on pollution, land development, or local residents’ health, whether or not they live near one. Democrats express more concern than Republicans about these potential effects, regardless of how close they live to a facility.
Voters from both parties support requiring companies to cover the cost of electric-grid upgrades for their data centers. They also favor greater government oversight of AI and limits on its use in schools. Most Democrats and independents oppose having a data center built in their community. Overall, most voters oppose local construction, including in counties that already have a data center.
The economy and jobs rank among voters’ top concerns, but four in 10 say they could still support a candidate whose economic views differ from their own.
Healthcare is also a major issue: nearly six in 10 voters consider it important, and about the same share would not support a candidate who disagrees with them on healthcare policy. Around half say they could not back a candidate with opposing views on Israel and the Palestinians. About six in 10 say they could never support a candidate they disagree with on abortion, guns, or immigration.
The NORC Civic Health & Elections Project surveyed registered voters nationwide from October 26 through November 3, 2026, completing 113,020 interviews in English and Spanish. The margin of sampling error, including the design effect, was plus or minus 0.5 percentage points for voters and plus or minus 1.2 points for nonvoters. Margins for individual states and subgroups vary according to sample size.
