September 10, 2024, New York – Stash, the investing platform that empowers hardworking Americans to invest, save, and achieve their financial dreams, today announced the results of its latest study on the economic issues impacting hundreds of millions of lower- and middle-income Americans. It’s the second study from the financial technology platform focused on revealing the needs and perceptions of ‘Main Street’ amid current economic conditions, and the first to ask respondents to share their choice for the next U.S. President (the question was optional, but the vast majority answered). The results reveal the schisms in our country that can be hidden by general census-matched polling, and also shed light on the magnitude of this election for this massive voting population.
“This Stash study of hardworking Americans’ perceptions on the election and economic issues reveals yet again that inflation and the high cost of living are deeply impacting lower- and middle-income Americans,” says Stash CEO, Liza Landsman. “What the study did shed sharper light on is how vastly different individuals’ perceive their economic condition depending on their political view. Regardless of the outcome of the election, every American deserves the right to be confident about their financial outlook, and have access to the tools, guidance, and advice that allow them to achieve personal financial success.”
Top findings from Stash’s Hardworking Americans’ Perceptions on the Election survey:
- The majority of hardworking Americans surveyed are highly concerned about inflation and their personal finances—and half are confident that the election will meaningfully change these aspects of their lives.
- Our respondents are overwhelmingly concerned with the high cost of living and inflation (43% identify it as the most important economic issue facing the country today).
- One-third of respondents are very concerned about their personal finances.
- Together, these dwarf other economic concerns, including the gap between the rich and poor (15%), wage issues (2%), and unemployment/jobs (0.7%).
- Inflation and the gap between the rich and the poor/income inequality far surpasses concerns over a possible recession (3%) and federal debt (0.2%).
- Over 50% report that they are not confident (26%) or not at all confident (27%) that the economy will improve in the next few months
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- Trump voters are dramatically more pessimistic: 78% are not confident that the economy will improve in the next few months, while only 25% of Harris voters feel the same way.
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- There are seeds of optimism: Half of respondents (51%) are confident or very confident that the election will meaningfully change what happens in the economy.
- Our respondents are overwhelmingly concerned with the high cost of living and inflation (43% identify it as the most important economic issue facing the country today).
- People with roughly similar financial situations but different political affiliations are coming to completely different conclusions about their own finances and the economy.
- Fans of Trump are deeply pessimistic about their own finances and inflation, and that’s much less true for Harris supporters (37% are highly concerned about their finances vs. 18% of Harris voters; 73% of Trump supporters are highly concerned about inflation vs 22% of Harris voters).
- Trump fans are also more highly concerned about the state of the U.S. economy broadly. They are nearly 4x more likely to rate their concern as a 10 on a 10-point scale.
- In addition to differing perspectives on their own finances and inflation, their top concerns differ. Trump voters are more likely than Harris voters to say that their top concern in their own lives is money and bills (38% vs 23%) and safety and crime (8% vs 2%). Harris voters are more likely to worry about health and healthcare costs (10% vs 5%); housing and rent (13% vs 8%); and climate and environment (11% vs 0.1%)
- With regard to national issues, fans of Harris are much more likely to be concerned about the gap between the rich and the poor.
- One-third of Harris voters say the top issue is the gap between rich and poor; just 1% of Trump voters say the same.
- One-third of Harris voters say the top issue is the gap between rich and poor; just 1% of Trump voters say the same.
- Candidates are neck-and-neck as the top choice for President according to our study.
- 49.9% of those surveyed are voting for Trump; 50.1% for Harris—both within the 5% margin of error for this study.
- No matter whom respondents plan to vote for, they’re doing so because they believe that candidate will help solve their economic problems.
- 98% of Harris voters think she’ll slow inflation, 98% say she’ll be better for money and savings; 99% and 99.9% of Trump supporters feel the same about Trump
- Trump voters are nearly 5x more likely to say that the economic conditions influence their vote ‘A great deal’ (55% of Trump voters vs. 12% of Harris voters).
- Tax reform (24%) and immigration reform (23%) are considered the most important considerations for the next presidential candidate overall.
- Harris voters are more likely to say that tax reform is a top priority (27% of Harris voters vs. 20% of Trump supporters); immigration reform is the top concern of Trump voters (42% vs 8%)
- More than one-third of Harris voters (38%) believe that more positive changes could come even before the election; Trump voters are more skeptical (only 7% believe positive changes are coming in the near term, and 78% are not confident that any positive change will happen before the election).
Methodology: Stash surveyed 2,217 Stash subscribers via a short Qualtrics survey between July 24, 2024 and August 9, 2024, which overlapped with the immediate aftermath of Biden stepping out of the race, Kamala Harris securing the Democratic nomination, and the stock market roiling on August 5th. Respondents were solicited via email. The final question asked respondents which candidate they plan to vote for; this question was optional and 80% of respondents answered.
Stash subscribers are hardworking Americans: they average $58K in HHI, deposit $30 at a time on average1, and start their investing journey with around $1002, on average. Ninety-five percent are beginner investors. Stasher live in all 50 states and their top employers are Wal-Mart, Amazon, and the U.S. military.
While there are a range of important issues at stake in this election cycle, as a financial services company, we focused our survey on economic topics only. Our responsibility is always to our subscribers and we support neither party; we are reporting on Stashers’ perspective on these issues because we believe that Stashers are ‘Main Street,’ and that their points of view should be better represented in the polls and in the news. The findings we’ve revealed hold steady for swing states vs non-swing states, as well as across gender. For that reason, we are thankful that so many subscribers agreed to share their political views with us during such a tumultuous period in this election cycle and in their lives.
About Stash:
Stash is a financial platform dedicated to empowering people to invest and build better lives. Stash’s plans—starting at just $3 a month—unlock access to a suite of simple, automated solutions designed to help people find security and peace of mind through saving and investing. The company’s full suite of products and services include StashWorks, a financial wellness benefit for employers that provides guidance and easy access to short- and long-term saving; the Stock-Back Debit Card2, delivering up to 3% Stock-Back on everyday purchases3; and its Managed Account, which was named as a top-performing robo-advisor by Condor Capital in 2023.4 Stashers are 15% more financially literate than the average American5, save more than $900 in the first year when they Auto-Stash6, and rely on Stash for timely education, expert advice, and clear next steps to help them grow their money and achieve lifelong goals.
