New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill holds up some just signed executive orders during her inauguration ceremony in Newark, N.J., Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) Donald Trump has called the cost of living crisis facing Americans a “hoax” and a “con-job,” but in reality, it is an issue with real political punch. A recent survey from Public Policy Polling and NewDEAL indicates that affordability is the most pressing issue to voters, outranking the war with Iran, crime and public safety, and immigration.
Democrats are right to focus on the high cost of living as we try to win this November. However, we must also recognize that effective messaging must go hand-in-hand with a governing agenda that shows that we recognize the urgency people are feeling and have a plan to do something about it.
Americans do not experience the cost of living emergency as an abstract debate. They experience it in rising grocery prices, gas, rent, child care bills, utility costs, and healthcare costs.
While Trump campaigned in 2024 on bringing costs down “on Day One,” illegal tariffs and an expensive war of choice with Iran have only driven up prices on everything from housing to gasoline, giving Democrats an opening to continue to win back voters’ trust.
To do so, we should point to the places where leaders are already lowering costs in measurable ways: cities, counties, and statehouses where officials are reducing the cost of services, expanding supply, and removing barriers that make life more expensive.
First, look at health care. In Shelby County, Tenn., Mayor Lee Harris created neighborhood health hubs to bring preventive care directly into high-need communities. Through ShelbyCares, residents can access free screenings, wellness programs, and referrals to primary care. Built through a partnership with a local medical college, the initiative helps people get care earlier, closer to home, and at a lower cost.
Childcare is another major pressure point. In Connecticut, state Rep. Kate Farrar helped deliver a major breakthrough on childcare: starting in 2027, families earning under $100,000 a year will have access to no-cost child care, while costs for families above that threshold will be capped at 7 percent of income.
Other leaders are attacking the same problem from the supply side. In Maine, House Speaker Ryan Fecteau led an effort to allow childcare facilities in residential zones and prevent municipalities from imposing unnecessary barriers. These modest changes make it easier to open more childcare centers, improving access and lowering costs.
Monthly utility bills are another place where families feel squeezed, and where smart policy can make a difference. In New Jersey, Gov. Mikie Sherill campaigned on lowering utility and energy costs, promising to freeze utility rates in her first year. On her first day as governor, she declared a state of emergency and signed executive orders aimed at freezing/offsetting electric rate hikes and expanding in-state power generation. In California, state Sen. Josh Becker spearheaded new legislation that requires utility providers to use cost-effective strategies and speed up clean energy and battery storage projects. And in Arizona, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego is taking a citywide approach: her Energy Access Plan expands home weatherization and efficiency upgrades while making assistance programs easier to access.
No affordability agenda can be complete without housing, where scarcity, vacancy, and red tape all push costs higher. In New Bedford, Mass., Mayor Jon Mitchell launched the Vacant Property Initiative to bring underused housing stock back into productive use. The program helps families navigate technical and legal barriers so vacant properties can be redeveloped, sold or occupied. That expands housing supply, reduces blight, strengthens neighborhoods and brings down costs.
These policies differ in geography and design, but we are united by a pragmatic approach: identify where families are being squeezed, remove barriers that restrict supply and drive up costs, and use public policy to make essential goods and services easier to access. Some of that work requires regulatory reform. Some of it requires smarter public investment. All of it requires treating affordability as a governing obligation.
That is the lesson Democrats should carry into the midterms. Voters know they are mad about the cost of living; they are also smart enough to understand that it’s not possible to build millions of homes or end a war-caused energy crisis overnight.
But they need to see that leaders understand the problem and are driven to make a material difference in their lives. By removing barriers, reducing costs, and proving that practical policy can improve everyday life, Democrats can show that affordability is not just a message to test. It is an urgent responsibility to deliver for hardworking Americans struggling to get by.
Debbie Cox Bultan is the CEO of NewDEAL,a national network of state and local Democratic elected officials focused on expanding opportunity and making government work.
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