This month's midterm elections saw a rousing Republican victory in Congress, upending Democrats' hold on the House of Representatives by the biggest margin in seven decades. However, the sweeping health reform law passed in March was not the primary reason voters gave for their choices, according to a new poll by the non-profit Kaiser Family Foundation.
Most voters said the economy was the biggest deciding factor, along with their party choice and views of the candidates themselves. Here's the breakdown of which issue voters said was their top reason for voting as they did, according to Kaiser:
- Economy and jobs (29%)
- Party preference (25%)
- Views of the actual candidates (21%)
- Health care (17%)
The 17% of voters who said health care played the biggest role in their vote were more likely to vote Republican by 15% compared to voters who placed the issue lower than the others. Interestingly: The 17% figure applied equally to seniors, suggesting that seniors were not more motivated by health reform than the rest of the voters.
Repealing health reform
The public is split on whether Congress should repeal the health reform law. About 49% of the public (not just midterm voters) favor repealing part or all of the law, with this figure equally divided between partial or total repeal.
On the other hand, 40% want the law expanded or left as-is, with 21% favoring the former and 19% the latter. "Voters split sharply along partisan lines, with two-thirds of those who voted for Democratic candidates wanting the law expanded or left as is and eight in ten of those who voted Republican supporting full or partial repeal," Kaiser observes in its findings.
Overall, the public appears as split on the issue of repeal as members of Congress, judging from my interviews with Democrat Diana DeGette of Colorado and Republican Michael Burgess of Texas.