Majority of North Carolinians Believe Federal Policies to Blame for High Gas Prices | Eastern NC Now

    Publisher's Note: This post appears here courtesy of the John Locke Foundation. The author of this post is Brittany Raymer.

    Gas prices are currently averaging over $4.566 at gas stations in North Carolina, and, according to the latest Civitas Poll, most believe that federal policies are to blame. That's bad news for the Biden administration, which has blamed the out-of-control energy costs on Putin, the Ukraine-Russia conflict, oil and gas companies, OPEC and pretty much every other group in-between.

    Even in his remarks yesterday about the possibility of a federal gas tax holiday, President Joe Biden was still calling sky-high gas prices "Putin's price hike."

    But as it turns out, 60.7% of North Carolinians believe that "the policies of the federal government" are to blame for "contributing to the current gas prices." Thirty-two percent believe that the price increases are due to the "effect of the war between Russia and Ukraine" and 7% are unsure.

    That's not good news as the Democrat party heads into the 2022 midterm elections, especially as Republicans in the state are eyeing a super majority.

    The numbers get more dire from there, as a staggeringly 90% report that inflation remains a "huge" problem and 75% of North Carolinians believe that we are already in a recession.

    When it comes to paying for gas and housing, 61.8% report finding it difficult to pay for housing and 76.1% are struggling to afford gas.

    And at this point, there is no end in sight as the government is relying on finicky dictators rather than striving for energy independence.

    It puts the Democrat party in an extremely bad position as the midterms loom on the horizon, both in North Carolina and across the country.

    The Civitas Poll shows that Republican candidates have a clear advantage in most of the state elections, with 44.8% reporting that they would "definitely" vote for a Republican candidate, compared to 32.5% for a Democratic candidate.

    On the federal level, that number climbs even higher with 45.8% claiming that they will "definitely" support a Republican candidate, with only 33.4% saying the same for a Democratic candidate.

    When looking at the race for the open U.S. Senate seat, 45% will likely vote for Republican Ted Budd, with 40.3% saying they would vote for Democrat Cheri Beasley.

    President Biden is also facing strong disapproval in the state, with only about 33% approving of his administration while nearly 60% disapprove. The results are in line with a recent Reuters-Ipsos survey showing that only 36% approve of the job he is doing as president.

    "It is a rule of politics that the president's party loses ground in midterm elections, but the economic outlook of voters may bring the pain of that rule to bear on Democrats in November," said Bryson. "A firm majority of voters are squarely placing blame for inflation and a potential recession on Joe Biden and the federal government; that is likely to have massive electoral coattail effects."