The year-long Swing Voter Project tracked individuals who voted for Joe Biden in 2020 and Donald Trump in 2024 through recurring monthly online panels. Participants consistently connected Donald Trump's administration policies directly to their household financial perspectives, yet Democrats failed to leverage this discontent into increased popularity. Furthermore, the discussions revealed a shared wariness regarding artificial intelligence and the rapid expansion of related data centers.
Key points
Critical swing voters quickly soured on Donald Trump after previously backing his 2024 pr…: Critical swing voters quickly soured on Donald Trump after previously backing his 2024 presidential campaign.
Economic populism generated notable policy alignment between voters from both the politic…: Economic populism generated notable policy alignment between voters from both the political left and right.
Democrats failed to gain favor among participants despite widespread dissatisfaction with…: Democrats failed to gain favor among participants despite widespread dissatisfaction with current presidential policies.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
Editor's note: Audio for this special will be posted soon.
Every election, there is a crucial sliver of voters who help determine which candidates win.
These are voters who bounce from one side to the other — the rare swing voters.
And all throughout 2026, NPR has had a front-row seat to how these folks think, listening in as voters in different swing states reflect on President Trump, the political issues that matter to them, and who they might vote for going forward.
In this case, these voters supported Joe Biden in 2020 and then swung to backing Trump in 2024.
They all participated in the Swing Voter Project, which hosts online focus groups every month. They are run by messaging firm Engagious and market research recruiting firm Nelson Recruiting. NPR is a partner on the project.
So just ahead of Election Day, what have we learned from swing voters this year? Here are five takeaways:
- These Biden-to-Trump voters quickly soured on the president
- Voters are able to draw a direct line from Trump's decisions to their feelings…
Public sector workers represented by the American Federation of Teachers are seeking judicial intervention in Washington, D.C., to halt administrative hurdles that leave their debt cancellation in limbo. The legal challenge targets Education Secretary Linda McMahon for allegedly recalculating qualifying payment counts and ignoring retroactive relief options. This pushback highlights growing tensions over how the federal government handles debt cancellation for educators, nurses, and nonprofit staff.
Driven by mounting anger over domestic neglect, violent crime, and hostile rhetoric from the right-wing government, voters mobilized in unprecedented numbers across the country. Their historic parliamentary gains now grant them substantial leverage to potentially help opposition factions unseat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. However, deep-seated political hesitations among potential coalition partners continue to leave the path forward highly uncertain.
As part of an ongoing mission to decentralize executive influence away from Westminster, 50 external roles are being recruited to build up capacity across policy, strategy, and private office teams. Totaling up to £2.8 million in basic pay, the expansion is financed through existing departmental allowances rather than fresh funding allocations. The expansion also anticipates a planned move to a permanent Manchester hub in 2027.