Recent affordability polling should be a wake-up call for the Right heading into the 2026 midterm elections: Americans believe Democrats care more about shielding them from rising utility bills than Republicans.
Energy costs matter as more than just a proxy for affordability — they sit at the foundation of nearly every cost-of-living pressure Americans face, especially for things like gas, utilities, and groceries that comprise the bulk of kitchen-table politics. Republicans must address this at the grid level if they seek to provide a vision worth voting for.
While inflation has cooled of late, cost anxiety has not. Housing prices remain high, energy volatility remains salient, and families’ budgets are feeling little comfort from macroeconomic talking points. Yet recent polling from Politico shows that while 37% of Americans feel that Democrats care more about protecting them from spiking natural gas, heating, and utility bills, only 25% feel the same way about Republicans.
This should be a signal for the Right, as affordability is routinely the midterm election battleground. These elections are won on practical concerns, not the culture war, since swing voters prioritize things like cost of living over partisan squabbles. The party that credibly promises relief from the current squeeze voters are feeling will have the advantage.
RISING ELECTRICITY PRICES KEY TO MIDTERM ELECTIONS BUT NO IMMEDIATE FIX READY
Energy is the tip of this spear for a reason. Energy costs ripple through the economy more pervasively than any other affordability driver, impacting midstream costs like transportation and manufacturing, which, in turn, can spike food and housing costs felt most directly by voters. Republicans have traditionally owned the narrative on energy abundance, but Democrats’ growing inroads should be of concern. Voters may not necessarily prefer the Left’s approach to energy policy, nor should they, but it appears conservatives may not have made our case clearly enough.
The stakes are far more than just political. With birthrates at historic lows, the marriage age rising, and young Americans delaying homeownership, conservatives can no longer economically or morally decouple our pro-family agenda from concerns about affordability. Forming families is difficult when housing is scarce, child care is expensive, and energy and food prices are constantly rising. Bringing down energy prices is the keystone to durable cost-of-living reform. Without it, our pro-family rhetoric rings hollow.
In practice, this looks like “conservative abundance” evolving from a mere slogan into a governing framework. At its core, this means expanding supply and removing barriers to production by encouraging domestic energy development, reforming zoning and permitting rules that constrain housing construction, streamlining federal approvals, and rolling back regulations that stifle growth without delivering meaningful public benefit. Much of this work has already begun in the states and nationally.
In Utah, for instance, Gov. Spencer Cox (R-UT) has advocated Operation Gigawatt and signed a key permitting bill that will remove barriers to energy development in the state. In Congress, a slate of energy permitting bills would allow all-of-the-above energy to flourish, from traditional sources to critical technologies such as advanced nuclear, geothermal, and transmission.
Ultimately, a diverse, abundant energy portfolio will increase reliability and drive down costs for American families. The Trump administration recognized this with last week’s announcement that the Department of the Interior will now permit solar projects, despite early opposition to the energy source.
RED STATES ARE WINNING WITH SOLAR — WASHINGTON SHOULD CATCH UP
The Left has recently embraced its own version of “abundance” rhetoric, mostly focused on dramatic public spending, but a durable vision of abundance cannot and should not merely be kept afloat by tax dollars. Instead, markets that allocate resources efficiently, federal restraint that limits bureaucratic drag, and incentives that reward production rather than restriction are all prescriptions that fit the conservative vision, and a truly lasting one, far better. Done well, an abundance agenda should aim at higher goals than just cheaper groceries and lower electric bills. Material abundance and moral confidence reinforce one another: When families can afford homes, energy, and childrearing, they are more likely to build stable lives and invest in the future.
This year’s midterm elections will not be decided by the party shouting the loudest about cultural issues. They will be decided by the party that successfully persuades Americans that it can make their daily lives more affordable and their future more secure. If voters currently believe Democrats are more attentive to rising energy and utility costs, Republicans should make correcting that perception a key political priority. The Right has both the philosophical foundation and policy tools to lead on abundance. It is time to make it clear to voters that we plan to govern with them, too.
Chris Barnard is the president of the American Conservation Coalition Action (ACC Action), a nonprofit organization activating the conservative environmental movement. Follow him on X @ChrisBarnardDL.