As the national debt has eclipsed $40 trillion, the Peter G. Peterson Foundation is releasing an expanded new monthly survey that includes Americans’ views on the nation’s fiscal health and what elected officials must do to earn their votes this November.

In response to open-ended questions in the survey, jointly conducted by Democratic firm Global Strategy Group and Republican firm North Star Opinion Research, voters have clear messages for candidates: It’s time to take the debt seriously and present a concrete plan to address it.

As part of this survey, the August U.S. Fiscal Confidence Index fell to 38 (100 is neutral), remaining near a two-year low.

The nonpartisan Peter G. Peterson Foundation’s survey also shows:

• 91% of voters (including 94% of Democrats, 88% of independents and 89% of Republicans) are concerned that the national debt’s effect on inflation is increasing the cost of living, including prices for groceries, energy, housing, transportation, and other goods and services.
• 89% of voters (including 93% of Democrats, 84% of independents and 87% of Republicans) are concerned that the national debt is contributing to higher borrowing costs, such as credit card interest, car loan rates, and mortgage rates.
• 96% (up 2 points from last month) say they are more likely to support a candidate with a plan to address the debt, including 97% of Democrats, 93% of independents and 97% of Republicans.
• 86% (up 4 points from last month) say a candidate having a plan to address the national debt is a factor in deciding their support in the 2026 election, including 87% of Democrats, 79% of independents and 89% of Republicans.
• 73% of voters (including 67% of Democrats, 78% of independents and 75% of Republicans) say they would consider supporting a candidate from a political party they do not usually support, if that candidate had a clear plan to address the debt.
• 97% of voters want Senate candidates this year to clearly explain their plans to prevent automatic Social Security benefit cuts, with virtually unanimous agreement in each age bracket and across party lines.

The survey asked open-ended questions about what voters would say to elected officials and candidates about the national debt crossing $40 trillion, and how the debt will factor into their vote in November.  A large plurality of voters call for “urgency” and “seriousness” in addressing the debt (40%). Vast majorities are considering this in their voting decision, with only 10% of responses expecting that the debt will not affect their vote. Examples of voters’ messages are available here.

“The United States has recklessly doubled its national debt past $40 trillion in less than a decade, and Americans are deeply concerned about the implications on affordability,” said Michael A. Peterson, CEO of the Peterson Foundation. “Voters understand that rising debt is driving up interest rates and inflation, adding to their cost-of-living while also slowing wage growth. With the midterm elections approaching, voters are making it clear that they want candidates with a decisive plan to address our unsustainable budget and debt.”

August’s U.S. Fiscal Confidence Index shows growing and widespread agreement that the president and Congress should spend more time addressing the national debt (85%, up from 81% in July). Large majorities also agree that the debt should be a top-three priority for our leaders (82% agree/14% disagree), including among 81% of Democrats, 76% of independents and 86% of Republicans.

The Fiscal Confidence Index measures public opinion about the national debt by asking six questions in three key areas:

• CONCERN: Level of concern and views about the direction of the national debt.
• PRIORITY: How high a priority addressing the debt should be for elected leaders.
• EXPECTATIONS: Expectations about whether the debt situation will get better or worse in the next few years.  

The survey results from these three areas are weighted equally and averaged to produce the Fiscal Confidence Index value. The Fiscal Confidence Index, like the Consumer Confidence Index, is indexed on a scale of 0 to 200, with a neutral midpoint of 100. A reading above 100 indicates positive sentiment. A reading below 100 indicates negative sentiment.

Fiscal Confidence Index Key Data Points: 

• The August Fiscal Confidence Index value is 38. (The July value was 39. The June value was 39.)
• The current Fiscal Confidence Index score for CONCERN about the debt is 34, indicating deep concern about the debt. The score for debt as a PRIORITY that leaders must address is 19, indicating that Americans want elected leaders to make addressing long-term debt a high priority. The score for EXPECTATIONS about progress on the debt is 61. The Fiscal Confidence Index is the average of these three sub-category scores.

The Peter G. Peterson Foundation commissioned this poll by Democratic firm Global Strategy Group and Republican firm North Star Opinion Research. The online poll surveyed 1,002 registered voters nationwide between August 17 and August 19, 2026. It has a margin of error of +/- 3.1%.

Detailed results can be found online at www.pgpf.org/FiscalConfidenceIndex.