Democrats are bracing for a bad election night this November, and if they aren’t worrying, the pundits certainly are on their behalf. The president’s party usually loses seats in midterm elections, especially the first off-year election for a new president, and Democrats have no seats to spare in Congress. But this year, Democrats have the added headwinds of high inflation — and worse, the dreaded specter of “stagflation,” or the combination of rising costs and lower economic growth.
How might inflation affect the 2022 midterms?
How bad is inflation?
The Consumer Price Index — the benchmark U.S. inflation gauge — rose 8.3 percent year-over-year in April, down slightly from 8.5 percent in March but still the highest inflation rate since 1982. “Inflation erodes living standards, and especially the kind of inflation we’re talking about — of basic needs — food and shelter and energy, the three pillars of existence,” Diane Swonk, chief economist at the consulting firm Grant Thornton LLP,