Democratic candidates for Congress are more trusted to handle corruption and inflation

Recent nationwide polling among registered voters shows that government corruption and inflation and high cost of goods are the most important issues for voters politically. These top two issues span generational lines and are a clear focus for self-identified Independents (46% and 44% of self-identified Independents claim these as important issues, respectively).

Democratic candidates for Congress are currently more trusted to handle both of these issues compared to Republican candidates. The generic Democratic candidate for the House has a 10-point advantage on handling inflation and cost of living (48% trust the Democrat more, 38% trust the Republican more, 14% are not sure). Voters also trust the Democrat more to handle government corruption (44% trust the Democrat more, 36% trust the Republican more, 21% not sure).

In fact, the Democratic House candidate is more trusted to handle several core issues to the 2026 cycle, including jobs and the economy, lowering costs for everyday goods, healthcare, and foreign policy. The only issue where the Republican has an advantage is immigration (45% trust the Republican more, 43% trust the Democrat more, 12% not sure).

In a poll of 2,240 registered voters nationwide conducted October 12-18, 2026, Change Research found that the generic Democrat currently leads the generic Republican by 11 points in the U.S. House (50% Democrat, 39% Republican, 12% undecided).