Old North News

A recent poll conducted among North Carolina voters reveals that economic issues are at the forefront of their concerns. Commissioned by the League of American Workers (LAW), the survey indicates that 23 percent of respondents consider it their top worry. The poll also highlights that rising food prices and decreasing income, due to inflation, are the primary impacts affecting these voters and their families.

The survey shows a two-to-one margin of voters believing that President Joe Biden’s economy does not provide an "opportunity for working-class Americans to improve their standard of living." When asked to identify the two most significant impacts from inflation, over half — 52 percent — pointed to food costs, while 34 percent cited income erosion. This survey was carried out by North Star Opinion Research on behalf of LAW, an organization committed to conducting research and developing proposals for public policies affecting American workers and the economy.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ most recent Consumer Price Index (CPI) reports, from January 2023 to January 2024, the nationwide food index rose by 2.6 percent. During this period, the cost of food away from home increased by 5.1 percent. These percentages were consistent with those in regions including North Carolina.

A report from The Wall Street Journal states that Americans’ spending on food has reached a peak unseen in three decades. Data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) revealed that American consumers spent 11.4 percent of their disposable personal income on food in 1991, compared to 11.3 percent in 2022.

With persistent inflation, Americans' incomes have been adversely affected as well. As per data from the U.S. Census Bureau, real pre-tax median household income in the U.S. in 2022 was $74,580 - a decrease of 2.3 percent from the 2021 estimate of $76,330. The decline in real median income after taxes from 2021 to 2022 was more pronounced, falling by 8.8 percent. According to the Bureau, this decrease was largely due to the expiration of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) tax policies, with the lowest-income households experiencing the most significant negative impact on their post-tax household incomes.

As per the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis' FRED database, the real median pre-tax household income in North Carolina in 2022 was $65,070 - approximately 14.6 percent lower than the national real median pre-tax household income for that year. This also represented a decrease of 4.2 percent from North Carolina's real median pre-tax income of $67,820 in 2021.