The Swing Voter Project, a collaboration between Sago and Engagious, continued in 2022 to understand how voters in key battleground states think and talk about critical issues, such as the state of democracy in America, inflation, and the war on Ukraine.

Between January and April of 2022, eight online focus groups took place with swing voters who voted for Donald Trump in 2016, then Joe Biden in 2020.

Top Concerns of Swing Voters

In January, COVID was still at the forefront with 10 out of 13 swing voters citing it as a top concern. By April, only one respondent stated COVID was their top concern. The others were more divided, with five out of 13 citing the war on Ukraine and four out of 13 citing the economy or inflation as top concerns.

Swing Voters on Inflation

Inflation was a consistent and rising concern for swing voters throughout the year’s first four months. Most did not directly blame Biden for rising prices but instead felt other factors contributed, including COVID, supply chain issues, and greed from large corporations. However, the majority of swing voters did not think Biden’s proposed inflation solutions would help decrease prices.

Swing Voters on Russia and Ukraine

The number of swing voters who saw Russia as a threat rather than an ally or competitor moved from 25 percent to 85 percent between February and March. They were split on whether Russia would have invaded Ukraine if Trump were president, but most approved of Biden’s handling of the war.

Swing Voters on Crime

Crime came up as a significant concern for swing voters. All but one of March’s respondents believed crime increased in their local communities throughout the pandemic. They had mixed feelings about the causes of this increase, but none blamed politicians. Still, swing voters indicated crime would be a voting issue at the local or state levels, but not for Congress.

Hungry for more swing voter insights? Watch our highlight video or check out the conversations directly on Engagious.