The Sconi

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has released new data, indicating that inflation rose in February. Recent polling suggests that the economy and pressures from inflation were among the top priorities for Wisconsin voters, who also expressed significant disapproval of President Biden's handling of the economy.

According to the BLS' most recent Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, the overall CPI rose 3.2% from February 2023 to February 2024. The BLS highlighted that this represents a larger annual CPI increase than the 3.1% rise observed from January 2023 to January 2024. The overall CPI also increased in February 2024 by 0.4% over January 2024, compared to a 0.3% increase from December 2023 to January 2024.

In addition, the BLS stated that increases in the shelter and gasoline index "contributed over sixty percent of the monthly increase in the index for all items."

Focusing on regional statistics, the BLS reported that in the Midwest region, which includes Wisconsin, the overall CPI increased by 2.8% from February 2023 to February 2024. Over this period, the shelter index saw an increase of 6.2%. From January 2024 to February 2024, the CPI rose by 0.6%, with an accompanying rise in the gasoline index of 8%.

A poll conducted by the League of American Workers (LAW) in December 2023 found that a plurality—40%—of likely Wisconsin voters identified economic issues such as jobs and inflation as one of their top two priorities when deciding how they will vote in upcoming general elections. Furthermore, by a margin of 58 to 41%, Wisconsin voters expressed disapproval of President Joe Biden's economic management and believed by a margin of 72 to 22% that the country is heading down the "wrong track."

The research was conducted by North Star Opinion Research and commissioned by LAW, an organization that works toward examining economic public policies affecting American workers, according to LAW's website.