Harris voters are more confident that the election will be fair than Trump voters

Early polls show that the state of democracy and the economy are the most important issues 2024 voters.

The Business is the top issue for Trump voters, followed by immigration. And democracy is Harris voters' top concern, followed by abortion – and reflects some of the themes we've seen throughout the campaign.

Most on both sides are afraid, not just worried, if the other side wins, and although most voters express confidence in this Choice Because voting is conducted fairly and accurately, Harris voters are more confident than Trump voters.

About 7 in 10 voters (majorities on both sides) expect there to be violence related to the presidential election results.

This is the first time in its history – which dates back to the 1970s – that the exit poll has asked voters about the possibility of violence surrounding a US presidential election.

There is dissatisfaction with the state of the country – about 7 in 10 are dissatisfied or upset with the way things are going – and this has been the case for a long time. While this would not be a particularly favorable environment for an incumbent party, we saw similar levels of dissatisfaction with competition for control of Congress during the 2022 midterm elections.

Voters' views of the country's economy are more negative than in 2020 – even though the country was in the middle of the COVID pandemic at the time. The vast majority of Trump voters view today's economy as negative, while Harris voters are more likely to think it is in good shape.

When asked if they are doing better nationally and politically than they were four years ago, more voters say they are doing worse financially than better.

The issue of abortion and gender

This is America's first presidential election after the revolution, and most voters want abortion to be largely legal. We see this at the national level and in the contested states.

However, current election polls show that abortion is not a top issue for voters. For women at the national level, democracy and the economy are more important than the issue of abortion.

Candidate qualities: What were voters looking for?

The ability to lead was the quality voters looked for most, followed by good judgment, someone who can make the changes needed and someone who cares.

Most made their decision a long time ago, but some made their decision late

These early election polls show that a large majority of voters decided on their candidate a long time ago – about 8 in 10 before September.

A smaller number of voters made their decision last week – currently in the single digits. More of these voters identify as independent than either political party. And they tend to be slightly younger than the electorate as a whole.

They profile themselves similarly to “rare voters” – those who did not vote in 2020. Around one in ten voters in this electorate say they did not vote in 2020.

CBS News exit polls are surveys of thousands of voters across the country. This includes in-person interviews with voters on Election Day, interviews with early voters at early voting sites, and telephone interviews to determine the views of those who voted by mail. The surveys were conducted by Edison research on behalf of the National Election Pool.