Likely voters are more optimistic about the economy in six months-time (55% right direction/26% wrong track) than they are currently (44% right direction/43% wrong track). While voters view of the current economy was a statistical tie, voters, two to one, thought the U.S. economy would be heading in the right direction, six months from now.
Are voters saying they are optimistic about the economic policies of Joe Biden? We can't say one-hundred percent, but President Biden has said he will raise taxes on the wealthy ($400K+ annual household income), spend trillions on economic recovery due to the pandemic, push Congress to pass climate change legislation, and possibly, "Medicare for All." The markets haven't responded negatively, yet, so maybe the markets and voters are changing their ideas about the role of government in the economy. Only time will tell whether voters support big government and corporate Socialism but right now the Democrats have the momentum politically and, more importantly, control the executive branch and both Houses of Congress.
Men were more likely to think the economy was currently heading in the right direction (57% right direction/35% wrong track) and six months from now (62% right direction/25% wrong track), compared to women, who were less optimistic about the current direction of the economy (33% right direction/51% wrong track) and the economy six month from now (48% right direction/28% wrong track).
The youngest voters surveyed, aged 18-29, were not overly enthusiastic about the current economy (39% right direction/42% wrong track) but felt better about it in six months (47% right direction/32% wrong track). The same was true of the oldest voters surveyed, aged 65+, who also felt optimistic about the economy six months from now (43% right direction/25% wrong track) but not so much about the current economy (29% right direction/54% wrong track).
How voters viewed the current state of the economy versus in six months was also split along political lines. Democrats were split on the current economy (46% right direction/45% wrong track) but changed their tune about the economy six months from now (74% right direction/12% wrong track). Republicans (54% right direction/36% wrong track) were content with the current economy, while six months from now, were split as to the direction it would take (42% right direction/41% wrong track). Independents were somewhat closer to Democrats in their displeasure with the current economy (30% right direction/51% wrong track) and optimism six months from now (45% right direction/27% wrong track).
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Zogby Analytics Poll Methodology
US Likely Voters
12/8/20 - 12/9/20
Zogby Analytics conducted an online survey of 892 likely voters in the US.
Using internal and trusted interactive partner resources, thousands of adults were randomly invited to participate in this interactive survey. Each invitation is password coded and secure so that one respondent can only access the survey one time.
Using information based on census data, voter registration figures, CIA fact books and exit polls, we use complex weighting techniques to best represent the demographics of the population being surveyed. Weighted variables may include age, race, gender, region, party, education, and religion. The party breakdown for this survey is as follows: 37% Democrat, 35% Republican and 28% Independent/unaffiliated.
Based on a confidence interval of 95%, the margin of error for 892 is +/- 3.3 percentage points. This means that all other things being equal, the identical survey repeated will have results within the margin of error 95 times out of 100.
Subsets of the data have a larger margin of error than the whole data set. As a rule we do not rely on the validity of very small subsets of the data especially sets smaller than 50-75 respondents. At that subset we can make estimations based on the data, but in these cases the data is more qualitative than quantitative.
Additional factors can create error, such as question wording and question order.
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About Zogby Analytics:
Zogby Analytics is respected nationally and internationally for its opinion research capabilities. Since 1984, Zogby has empowered clients with powerful information and knowledge critical for making informed strategic decisions.
The firm conducts multi-phased opinion research engagements for banking and financial services institutions, insurance companies, hospitals and medical centers, retailers and developers, religious institutions, cultural organizations, colleges and universities, IT companies and Federal agencies. Zogby's dedication and commitment to excellence and accuracy are reflected in its state-of-the-art opinion research capabilities and objective analysis and consultation.