In August, the Daily Lobo partnered with other newsrooms throughout the state to create a survey that asked readers which issues they care about the most this election season.
There were 27 responses to the Daily Lobo survey. Participants were given the option to rank the top three most important issues to them during the upcoming election. Out of the 22 options, the “economy/cost of living” category was deemed most important based on a ranked-choice analysis.
The second most important issue to voters was democracy. Climate change was third, followed closely by abortion, international policy, health care and LGBTQ+ rights.
Out of the 22 options, only two were unmarked by any respondents: taxes and election integrity. Agriculture, drug reform and water were also among the least important issues to respondents.
Issues that respondents care about most, by identity type
Age
The majority of the survey respondents were 27 years old or younger — around the cutoff for the age range of Generation Z, according to Pew Research Center.
Sixteen of the respondents were members of Gen Z. Nine respondents specified ages older than Gen Z.
Between the “Gen Z and younger” category and the “millennial and older” category, there was no overlap in the three issues that respondents cared about the most.
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Gen Z respondents cared the most about the “economy/cost of living” category, followed by the “democracy” and “abortion” categories. Older surveyees cared the most about climate change, international policy and racial justice, in that order.
Location
Respondents were given the option to input their zip code or general location.
The majority of the respondents lived in or near Albuquerque, while five lived in other parts of New Mexico or other states.
The “democracy” and “economy” categories both broke the top three most important issues for readers who lived both in and outside of Albuquerque.
Albuquerque residents cared about international policy the second most, while that didn’t break the top three for non-Albuquerque residents. People outside the Albuquerque area cared about health care the third most, while that category didn’t break the top three for Albuquerque residents.
Gender
Respondents checked that they identified as "man," "woman" or "nonbinary," and one respondent preferred not to specify.
Women were the only group for which abortion was among the top three most important issues. Nonbinary people were the only group for which LGBTQ+ rights was among the top three.
Women also cared about the “economy/cost of living” category more than the other two groups. Men cared the most about democracy, followed by international policy and climate change.
Race and ethnicity
Respondents had the option of checking one box for the “race or ethnicity” question, which included a “multiracial” category. The majority of the respondents checked either “white” or “Hispanic or Latino.” The other categories that surveyees identified as were “Asian or Asian American,” “Black or African American,” “multiracial” and “other/prefer not to state.”
The “white,” “Hispanic or Latino” and other categories — a collective of the additional demographics — all selected the “economy/cost of living” category as one of their top three issues. Hispanic or Latino surveyees cared about abortion first, while the “abortion” category wasn’t in the top three for the other races. Surveyees who did not select “white” or “Hispanic or Latino” cared about international policy more than the other races.
Intersectionality
Intersectionality is “the complex, cumulative way in which the effects of multiple forms of discrimination … intersect especially in the experiences of marginalized individuals or groups,” according to Merriam-Webster.
People who marked two or more of the following were classified as those who had intersectional identities: “woman,” “nonbinary,” any specified racial or ethnic category besides “white,” and — as specified in the free-response section — members of the LGBTQ+ community, rural and farming communities, the neurodivergent community and disabled communities.
Respondents who had intersectional identities cared about abortion and climate change more than those who didn’t specify intersectional identities. Respondents who did not specify intersectional identities cared about democracy the most, while that category didn’t make the top three for people with intersectional identities.
Lauren Lifke is the managing editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at managingeditor@dailylobo.com or on X @lauren_lifke
Lauren Lifke is the managing editor for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at managingeditor@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @lauren_lifke
