PORTLAND, OR (September 29, 2026) – A new national poll conducted by Our Republic and Rasmussen Reports finds that significant numbers of voters could be persuaded to cross party lines if the opposing party offers a better plan for lowering the cost of living.
Among voters who currently support Democratic congressional candidates, 19% said they would vote Republican instead if they believed Republicans had the best plan to lower the cost of groceries, gasoline, and clothing. Sixteen percent said they would switch parties over a Republican plan they believed was best for lowering housing costs.
Republican voters appear less likely to cross party lines. Eleven percent said they would vote Democratic if Democrats had the best plan for lowering the cost of groceries, gasoline, and clothing, while 8% said they would switch over housing costs.
Among voters currently supporting another candidate or unsure about their congressional choice, 35% said they would vote for whichever party has the best plan to lower the cost of groceries, gasoline, and clothing. Twenty-four percent said the same about housing costs.
The survey included 1,026 likely voters. It was conducted on September 20, 2026.
See all poll questions and key insights from the crosstabs at the bottom of this press release.
The survey also found that 5% of Democratic likely voters and 7% of Republican likely voters said they would break an election law—such as voting more than once or voting in a state where they no longer live—if they believed they were unlikely to be caught and doing so would help their party win more congressional seats. This is notable because the margin of victory in close congressional races will likely be much lower than 5 percentage points.
The poll also found a sharp partisan divide over expanding the U.S. Supreme Court. Fifty-nine percent of Democratic congressional voters said they would support significantly increasing the number of Supreme Court seats if Democrats controlled Congress and won the presidency in 2028. By comparison, just 11% of Republican voters said they would support expanding the Court if Republicans retained control of Congress.
The survey of 1,026 likely U.S. voters was conducted September 20, 2026, by Rasmussen Reports and Our Republic. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence.
The following quotes by Our Republic experts are available for attribution:
“It’s still the economy, stupid! These results clearly suggest that economic issues will play an important role in determining who ultimately wins the 2026 election. Significant numbers of voters say they are willing to cross party lines if the other party offers what they believe is a better plan for lowering the cost of everyday necessities, including housing, groceries, gasoline, and clothing.
“Affordability is the most important issue for voters most likely to decide the election. Whichever party can present Americans with the best proposal for improving the U.S. economy will not only be well-positioned to win in 2026, it will also have a huge advantage in 2028, when voters will choose a new president.
“The poll also found that a small but meaningful percentage of voters in both major parties say they would break election laws if they thought they could get away with it and doing so would help their preferred candidates. With the margin of victory in many key races expected to be razor-thin in November, these findings highlight the need for Congress to pass common-sense election security reforms.”
Justin Haskins
President, Senior Fellow
Our Republic
If you’d like to interview an Our Republic expert on this topic or other topics, please contact Justin Haskins, senior fellow and president of Our Republic, at justin@justinhaskins.com, or by phone or text at (401) 464-1966.
National Survey of 1,026 U.S. Likely Voters
Conducted September 20, 2026
By Our Republic and Rasmussen Reports
1* If the elections for Congress were held today, would you vote for the Democratic candidate or for the Republican candidate?
49% The Democratic candidate
43% The Republican candidate
4% Some other candidate
4% Not sure
2* (Asked of 503 Voters Who Would Vote For The Democratic Candidate) Would you vote for a Republican instead if you believed Republicans had the best plan to lower the cost of housing?
16% Yes
68% No
16% Not sure
3* (Asked of 503 Voters Who Would Vote For The Democratic Candidate) Would you vote for a Republican instead if you believed Republicans had the best plan to lower the cost of groceries, gasoline, and clothing?
19% Yes
65% No
16% Not sure
4* (Asked of 503 Voters Who Would Vote For The Democratic Candidate) Would you break an election law, such as voting in a state where you no longer live or voting more than once, if you believed that it’s unlikely you would be caught and that it would help Democrats win more seats in Congress?
5% Yes
90% No
4% Not sure
KEY INSIGHT: 5% of Democratic voters and 7% of Republican voters said they would break an election law to help their preferred candidate win. Both percentages are much higher than the typical margin of error in key toss-up states.
KEY INSIGHT: Younger Democratic voters were much more likely to say they would break election laws to help a candidate win. 15% of 18-24-year olds, 24% of 25-29-year-olds, and 14% of 30-35-year-olds said they would break election laws to help a candidate.
5* (Asked of 503 Voters Who Would Vote For The Democratic Candidate) If Democrats were to take control of Congress and a Democrat were to win the presidency in 2028, would you support a proposal to significantly increase the number of seats on the Supreme Court so that the court is more ideologically aligned with your values?
59% Yes
22% No
19% Not sure
KEY INSIGHT: Only 11% of Republicans said they would favor increasing the size of the Supreme Court if they had the political power to do so, much lower than the percentage of Democrats who would favor adding SCOTUS seats (59%).
6* (Asked of 441 Voters Who Would Vote For The Republican Candidate) Would you vote for a Democrat instead if you believed Democrats had the best plan to lower the cost of housing?
8% Yes
82% No
10% Not sure
7* (Asked of 441 Voters Who Would Vote For The Republican Candidate) Would you vote for a Democrat instead if you believed Democrats had the best plan to lower the cost of groceries, gasoline, and clothing?
11% Yes
79% No
10% Not sure
8* (Asked of 441 Voters Who Would Vote For The Republican Candidate) Would you break an election law, such as voting in a state where you no longer live or voting more than once, if you believed that it’s unlikely you would be caught and that it would help Republicans win more seats in Congress?
7% Yes
88% No
4% Not sure
9* (Asked of 441 Voters Who Would Vote For The Republican Candidate) If Republicans were to keep control of Congress in the 2026 election, would you support a proposal to significantly increase the number of seats on the Supreme Court so that the court is more ideologically aligned with your values?
11% Yes
81% No
8% Not sure
10* (Asked of 82 Voters Who Would Vote For Some Other Candidate Or Are Not Sure) Would you be willing to vote for whichever political party has the best plan to lower the cost of housing?
24% Yes
20% No
56% Not sure
11* (Asked of 82 Voters Who Would Vote For Some Other Candidate Or Are Not Sure) Would you be willing to vote for whichever political party has the best plan to lower the cost of groceries, gasoline, and clothing?
35% Yes
17% No
48% Not sure
12* (Asked of 82 Voters Who Would Vote For Some Other Candidate Or Are Not Sure) Would you break an election law, such as voting in a state where you no longer live or voting more than once, if you believed that it’s unlikely you would be caught and that it would help your preferred candidates to win their elections?
7% Yes
76% No
17% Not sure
13* (Asked of 82 Voters Who Would Vote For Some Other Candidate Or Are Not Sure) Would you support a proposal to significantly increase the number of seats on the Supreme Court so that the court is more ideologically aligned with your values?
13% Yes
51% No
37% Not sure
14* Would you support a proposal that would make Washington, D.C., a state?
29% Yes
54% No
17% Not sure
15* Would you support a proposal to end the Electoral College and instead make all presidential elections determined by a national popular vote?
42% Yes
45% No
13% Not sure
KEY INSIGHT: Support for ending the Electoral College and switching to a national popular vote model was highest among Democrats (64%). Support was second-highest among Independents (42%), while Republicans supported the proposal at the lowest rate (20%).
NOTE: Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence
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