The latest Pew Research Center poll asked respondents about which issue they would most like to hear congressional candidates focus on during this year’s election cycle. Not surprisingly, the economy dominated, but it was the issue that came in second that stood out for me.
Immigration, healthcare and foreign policy were all in the mix, but it was “government ethics and reform” that came up as the second most frequently volunteered answer.
Public corruption, in other words, has not gone unnoticed by many American voters.
The New York Times similarly noted in an interesting analysis piece over the weekend that there’s related evidence that suggests the electorate has taken a greater interest in combatting corruption during Donald Trump’s scandal-plagued second term: “An Ipsos poll conducted in April and May, which asked respondents about their three biggest concerns, found that 37 percent of Americans selected corruption — a 10 percent increase over a year ago.”
It’s not uncommon to hear some leading political voices make the case that because so many voters are prioritizing economic concerns above any other consideration, Democrats would be foolish to focus on anything but kitchen-table issues with 14 weeks remaining before Election Day 2026.
But to their credit, many leading voices in the party have begun tying economic and corruption concerns together as two sides of the same coin. Punchbowl News reported last week:
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is looking to put a spotlight on Democrats’ case that President Donald Trump is making billions of dollars personally off his office while the cost of living climbs for average Americans.
The effort ties right in with a central part of Democrats’ campaign messaging. Senate Democrats argue that Trump and administration officials have served themselves in ways that have contributed to rising prices.
The New York Democrat released a report on this last week, arguing that Trump and his family have used the presidency to achieve “eye-popping profits” while consumers have continued to face an affordability crisis. It argued that any self-enrichment serves to “distort markets, increase costs and financial risks for ordinary Americans, undermine fair competition for honest businesses, and erode public confidence in democratic institutions.”
In a written statement, Schumer argued, “Trump has betrayed the American people by using our highest office not for the good of country, but to pad his own bank account, at the expense of working families. Senate Democrats are launching this effort to expose the corruption, show Americans exactly what it is costing them, and build the reforms needed to stop any president from using public office for personal profit.”
Complicating matters for Republicans is the fact that much of their base has voiced related concerns. MS NOW reported last week, “Democrats appear to have new partners in calling out President Donald Trump’s alleged self-dealing in office: onetime MAGA mouthpieces.”
The report added, “In recent weeks, key members of the MAGA media ecosystem have criticized the president and his family members for using the office of the presidency to enrich themselves — particularly after last month’s release of the president’s financial disclosures, which showed he made more than $1 billion in cryptocurrency-related income last year and more than $2 billion total. One GOP strategist said the trend shows just how fed up some of Trump’s formerly most ardent supporters have become.”
Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia, ahead of his re-election bid this year, has gone further than most on the issue, building much of his 2026 candidacy around the idea that corruption isn’t just a major national issue, it’s also the principal cause for the problems plaguing regular Americans in their everyday lives.
“You aren’t the problem. Neither are your fellow Americans,” Ossoff routinely has told Georgians. “Corruption is why things don’t work for ordinary people.”
It looks like other Democratic leaders are starting to run with the same message — pitching it to an electorate that’s ready to hear it.
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