Surging costs of living top US voter concerns

FORT LAUDERDALE: Soaring prices for gas, medicine and other cost of living essentials are preoccupying Americans as they start to cast their ballots ahead of next week’s midterm elections.

A whopping 84 percent of voters who have cast their ballots early listed the economy as their biggest concern this election cycle, according to a recent Pew Research Center survey.

Kyler Daugherty, a 43-year-old health care worker, summed up the sentiment as he filled up his gas tank in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

“It’s ridiculous. I mean, everything’s gone up, from food to transportation to gas prices,” he told AFP.

Fuel costs have skyrocketed around the world since the United States and Israel launched strikes on Iran in February.

US gas prices rose 9.1 percent in September alone, according to official figures, a headache for residents in a state like Florida, where most people rely on cars to get around.

“It affects transportation, it affects goods, it affects everything,” Matthew Moore, a 63-year-old attorney, said after he cast his ballot early.

“We transport a lot by truck. Air prices have gone up. My tickets home for Christmas have doubled since last year,” he said.