US elections 2020: One-third of US voters cite economy as most critical issue, says Poll

US elections 2020: Roughly one-third of the registered American voters have cited the economy as the most critical issue as ballots were cast in the US presidential election, according to the preliminary results of a nationwide CNN exit poll.

The poll released on Election Day on Tuesday, showed that about 1 in 5 cited racial inequality the most critical issue in choosing a presidential candidate, while about 1 in 6 called the Covid-19 pandemic as the most important in their decision, Xinhua news agency reported.

Despite the importance of economy, the exit poll also shows that a slim majority of voters believe that the nation`s priority now should be containing the coronavirus over rebuilding the economy.

Noting that voters are divided over the top issues, the poll said President Donald Trump`s supporters are far more likely to cite the economy their top issue (about 6 in 10) than to cite coronavirus (just 5 per cent).

However, among Democratic presidential nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden`s supporters, more cite coronavirus as their top issue (around 3 in 10) than the economy (about 1 in 10).

The poll, conducted by Edison Research on behalf of the National Election Pool, is a combination of in-person interviews with Election Day voters and telephone polls measuring the views of absentee by-mail and early voters.

Voting took place across the United States, as the Covid-19 pandemic is raging on and a political divide running deeper.

"This atmosphere we`ve been in especially in Washington where it`s so divided is not good for the country, regardless of what side you`re on," Tom Waters, a soybean and corn farmer in Orrick, Missouri, told Xinhua in a phone interview after voting on Tuesday.

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"I hope, the winning side, whoever it is will listen and start to pull this country back together," he added.

The story has been taken from a news agency