MEMO: DCCC Polling Shows Rural America is Souring on Republicans and Democrats Have the Opportunity to Make Inroads

To: Interested Parties
From: Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
Date: June 3, 2026
Subject: DCCC Polling Shows Rural America is Souring on Republicans and Democrats Have the Opportunity to Make Inroads

New DCCC polling shows that rural America is souring on Republicans and their disastrous agenda. For years, the GOP has relied on strong margins in rural communities to keep an electoral advantage while actively voting for policies that decimate rural America. Since taking total power in Washington, Republicans have gutted rural health care systems, slashed funding for SNAP and other essential services, championed the blatant corruption of a “slush fund” for criminals and $1 billion ballroom, and supported chaotic price-hiking tariffs that have drastically hit rural communities. 

The DCCC’s First Rural Engagement Program
Last year, the DCCC launched Our Power, Our Country to persuade and engage voters who are an essential part of Democrats’ path to victory in the midterm elections. For the first time ever, the program is also reaching rural voters through rapid response, in-depth research and polling, paid media, in-district organizing, and grassroots cohorts.

Rural Voters’ Top Issues
The GOP foundation in rural America is starting to crumble. DCCC rural battleground polling shows that rural voters prioritize the same issues that all battleground voters do, and are increasingly dissatisfied with Republicans in Congress.

• The shift is driven by three top issues: the rising cost of living, the burden of health care expenses, and government corruption. 
• Rural Americans are also very concerned about the economic impacts of the war in Iran and strongly oppose policies that only work for billionaires while leaving working families behind — the cornerstones of the Trump Republican administration. 
• When it comes to the top two issues that rural voters want Congress to prioritize, they cite government corruption (33%) and inflation and the cost of living (29%).
• Independent, Black, and Hispanic rural voters especially want Congress to prioritize health care costs and access (57% of Independents rating “extremely important”), public education (75% of Black voters rating “extremely important”), and water quality and access (69% of Hispanic voters rating “extremely important”).

The Reality of Republican Policies on Rural Communities

• Nearly 6 in 10 farmers are reporting worsening finances due to the increase in fertilizer and fuel costs — since February, diesel prices are up about 46% and 70% of farmers cannot afford all the fertilizer they need.
• There are about 2,000 rural hospitals and 40% of them already were running on fumes. After Republicans voted for the largest Medicaid cuts in history, essential medical centers in rural communities have started to reduce services and close their doors.
• Republican tariffs have caused American farmers to face the widest gap between production costs and earnings in a decade.

• At the end of 2025, over 15,000 farms had closed across the country and farm bankruptcies increased by 46%.

###