International Issues and the Mid-Term Elections

The Pew Research Center did an interesting poll last week that underscored the importance of international issues for the mid-term elections. The poll revealed that 51% of voters say “national issues” matter more than local concerns in their vote for Congress. Just 23% say local issues will be more important than national issues to their vote. And for those who see national issues as paramount, these are the issues that top the list: the situation in Iraq and terrorism.

I find this fascinating. At least for the upcoming election, all politics is not local. The most important issues for voters in this mid-term election are national issues, which in large part are really international issues. They include the war in Iraq, terrorism, immigration, and energy policy. For Democrats and independents the most important issue is the situation in Iraq, and for Republicans it is terrorism. And as the graph at left indicates (click to enlarge), the public increasingly is of the view that the situation in Iraq is hurting more than helping the war on terror.

I’m curious what our readers think is the most important national issue for the upcoming mid-term elections. Cast your vote. But in order to replicate the Pew poll, please pick your top TWO issues.