Pulse Check: How are Ideologically-Moderate Women Feeling About the Midterms?

Here at Galvanize Action, we’ve been getting a lot of questions about how our audience feels about the upcoming midterm elections. Let’s take a look at what’s top of mind for ideologically-moderate white women as we approach the season of civic pulse checks!

Ideologically-moderate women find themselves in an environment rife with chaos and corruption.

Last month, the Supreme Court decision in Louisiana v. Callais eviscerated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. The act, among other things, prohibits discriminatory voting practices or procedures on the basis of race or color. This means ending literacy tests, poll taxes, and other practices that had long disenfranchised voters of color. In the years since, we have seen this act used to prevent gerrymandering that would restrict voters of color’s civic power. The May Supreme Court ruling dismantled these protections. In the immediate aftermath of this decision, states, including Louisiana and Mississippi, raced to redraw congressional maps, Florida approved a plan that would add four new Republican-leaning seats, and the Virginia Supreme Court struck down a voter-approved restructuring plan that would have favored Democrats.

While the news of this ruling may not be reaching our audience directly, the consequences undermine the integrity of our democracy and of free and fair elections, decreasing trust in government and a sense of civic self-efficacy, which our audience already struggles with. 

This sense of chaos is exacerbated by worsening economic conditions.

As their top concern, economic instability cuts to the center of our audience’s anxieties. The (very unpopular) war in Iran has caused oil prices to skyrocket. Gas prices average $4.43/ gallon nationally, up nearly 50% since the war began. And inflation is at a three-year high, hitting 3.8% in April. It’s no wonder that people across the country are feeling additional strain on their finances. This will only get worse for many families as summer hits and they can no longer access school lunch and afterschool care programs and higher temperatures cause electricity bills to rise. In our recent survey, 82% of ideologically-moderate white women said increased gas prices have affected their spending and 27% have had to cut back on essential spending (like groceries) or are in financial distress. 

We are also seeing a concerned trend of corruption and leaders taking advantage of their positions for financial gain. In April, 79% of ideologically-moderate white women surveyed were concerned “that members of the current presidential administration are using their positions for personal financial gain,” and only 6% were not at all concerned. Our recent survey asked respondents to select what most concerns them from a list of actions the Trump administration has been accused of. The most selected option (28%) was “approving technology deals with foreign governments that benefit the Trump family financially.” Accusations of self-dealing (taking advantage of your position for personal gain) include President Trump’s controversial anti-weaponization fund which would have paid out $1.766 billion to those who the administration deemed unfairly targeted by past administrations. Many were concerned that this money would have gone to those involved in the January 6 attack on the US Capitol. Corruption also decreases trust in government and the belief that those in charge have our best interests at heart. 

Will ideologically-moderate women vote this year? 

With the midterms on the horizon, we asked our audience to describe their plans to vote in the election. Overall, 85% are planning to vote! But what’s really important are the 22% who plan to vote, but aren’t yet sure how they’ll vote. How they cast their ballot will depend on who is able to promise real solutions to chaos and corruption.