THE NEW YORK TIMES: Both parties are now preparing for “affordability” to play a major role in the midterm elections next year. How did it emerge so quickly?
On President Trump’s first day back in office, Representative Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat from New Jersey, hit him with a new political mantra. His barrage of executive orders, she argued, had failed to make any attempt to address the “affordability crisis.”
It was an early sign of where the Democratic Party was headed. Nearly a year later, Ms. Sherrill is preparing to take office after winning her bid for governor. And “affordability” is dominating the political conversation.
The word has long been used sporadically in politics — Mr. Trump promised to “make America affordable again” during his 2024 campaign — but never with the same force and frequency as in the past few months.
Democrats used “affordability” to harness worries about the cost of living and sweep to victory in this November’s elections. And once that happened, references to “affordability” as a stand-alone term skyrocketed. » | Lisa Lerer and Jonah Smith | Saturday, December 20, 2025
