The Midterms: More than ever "It's the economy, stupid"

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Nov. 10, 2026 — While Democrats take a prolonged victory lap over the midterm elections with many hailing them as a wholesale repudiation of the Trump agenda, consumer expert Dr. Ines Poza of Poza Consulting Services cautions against leaping to this conclusion, pointing to lessons from the past.  "Harris lost the presidential election because voters, including an unprecedented number of Latinos, thought voting for Trump meant voting for a better economy."

A Gallup poll conducted just before the 2024 presidential election found 90% of voters said, "the economy" was the main influence on their vote, well ahead of "democracy."  Similar research by Entravision/Altamed/BSP found close to 90% of Latinos across California and Texas named the cost of living, jobs and the economy as their three main concerns for that election.

The Old Democratic Guard ... needs to embrace the economy as job one.

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Poza continues "But instead of life becoming more affordable, life got much, much more expensive under Trump."   

Poza says while this opened the door for the Bluenami, just as in 2024, voters' choice had less to do with ideology and more with exasperation and a sense of betrayal over the increasingly high cost of living.  She believes this is something Democratic leadership still doesn't fully grasp. 

"Candidates like Abdul El Sayed of Michigan and James Talarico of Texas, weren't endorsed by Chuck Schumer until after they won their primaries because of worries their progressive ideology made them unelectable."  Poza continues "But these candidates didn't win on ideology.  They won by clearly messaging they understood voters' pain and would advocate on their behalf."  Regarding ideological issues like corruption, she explains "(Corruption) only resonated when it was clearly tied to why the rich were getting richer while the rest of us got squeezed tighter and tighter.  Listen to speeches by El Sayed and Talarico, Scott Colom of Mississippi, Annie Andrews of South Carolina or Keisha Lance Bottoms of Georgia. They get it." 

Poza continues, "The Old Democratic Guard – especially Chuck Schumer who now claims, 'WE won!' - needs to stop giving oxygen to divisive rhetoric that puts ideology in the crosshairs, and embrace the economy as job one." explaining, "The New Breed of Blue won by making 'Affordability for All' their battle cry. And when you think of it, that's as democratic as it gets." 

Contact Dr. Poza at [email protected]

SOURCE Poza Consulting Services