Midterm elections: How affordability and the economy could impact voters

As rising concerns about the cost of everyday goods , including gas and groceries, weigh on household finances, the election is shaping up to be a key test of economic sentiment. Issues like inflation, home prices, mortgages and childcare impact households differently , but most Americans have a pessimistic economic outlook , according to CNBC's latest All-America Economic Survey , which polled 1,000 registered voters nationwide in mid-October. "Affordability is the central issue in the forthcoming midterm elections," said William Galston, a senior fellow and chair of governance studies at the Brookings Institution, a think tank. "Nothing else is close." With less than a week until the Nov.