Voters in Mississippi made their pick for president while holding mixed views about the country’s direction, according to an expansive AP survey of the American electorate.
The race between President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden concluded Tuesday as the nation remains in the throes of a global public health crisis and mired in the economic downturn it brought on. AP VoteCast found that 48% of Mississippi voters said the U.S. is on the right track and 51% of voters said it is headed in the wrong direction.
Here’s a snapshot of who voted and what matters to them, based on preliminary results from AP VoteCast, a nationwide survey of about 133,000 voters and nonvoters — including 1,249 voters and 292 nonvoters in Mississippi — conducted for The Associated Press by NORC at the University of Chicago.
TRUMP VS BIDEN
In the race for president, Voters under 45 were split between Trump and Biden while Trump led among older voters.
Black voters were more likely to favor Biden but Trump was preferred over Biden among white voters.
Trump had an apparent advantage over Biden among college-educated voters. Voters without a college degree were more likely to favor Trump.
Both suburban voters and voters in small towns and rural areas were more likely to support Trump over Biden.
RACE FOR SENATE
In the race for U.S. Senate, Voters under 45 modestly preferred Mike Espy over Cindy Hyde-Smith while Hyde-Smith was preferred among older voters.
Black voters were more likely to back Espy over Hyde-Smith but white voters were more likely to support Hyde-Smith over Espy.
Hyde-Smith appeared to lead among college-educated voters. Hyde-Smith led among voters without a college degree.
Suburban voters modestly preferred Hyde-Smith over Espy. Voters in small towns and rural areas were more likely to favor Hyde-Smith.
FACING THE PANDEMIC
The coronavirus pandemic has spread through the U.S. for roughly eight months, killing more than 230,000 Americans. Overall, 24% of voters said the virus in the U.S. is completely or mostly under control, and 33% said it’s somewhat under control. Forty-two percent of voters think the coronavirus is not at all under control in this country.
ON THE ISSUES
The coronavirus pandemic was top of mind for many voters in Mississippi. Thirty-three percent said it is the most important issue facing the country today.
Voters also considered the economy a major issue, with 29% saying it ranked at the top.
Eleven percent named health care, 10% named racism and 5% named law enforcement.
NATIONAL ECONOMY
Voters were closely divided in their assessments of the nation’s economy. Overall, 51% described economic conditions in the U.S. as excellent or good, and 48% called them not so good or poor.
STAYING AT HOME
Among registered voters who chose not to cast a ballot in Mississippi, 24% said that was because they don’t like politics generally, 21% said they don’t like the candidates and 17% said they are concerned about being exposed to the coronavirus.
In Mississippi, 74% of nonvoters were younger than 45 and 88% did not have a college degree.
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AP created this story automatically using results from AP VoteCast, a survey of the American electorate conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago for Fox News, NPR, PBS NewsHour, Univision News, USA Today Network, The Wall Street Journal and The Associated Press. The survey of 1,249 voters in Mississippi was conducted for eight days, concluding as polls closed. Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish. The survey combines a random sample of registered voters drawn from the state voter file and self-identified registered voters selected from nonprobability online panels. The margin of sampling error for voters is estimated to be plus or minus 3.6 percentage points. Find more details about AP VoteCast’s methodology at https://ap.org/votecast.
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For AP’s complete coverage of the U.S. presidential elections: https://apnews.com/hub/election-2020
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