A majority of voters opposes the Iran war, AI data centers and dislikes tech CEOs
Image by Alexa Feldmann 10/22/2026
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Detailed poll results available at www.uml.edu/polls. UMass Lowell representatives are available for interviews.
LOWELL, Mass. – A majority of likely voters polled from across the country has signaled support for Democratic candidates for seats in the U.S. House of Representatives in the midterm election, according to UMass Lowell/YouGov survey results issued Thursday.
When asked whether they would vote for a Democrat or Republican vying to become a U.S. representative if the election were held today, 52% of respondents said they would support the Democratic candidate, while 43% would vote for the Republican, with 4% undecided and 1% who said they would not vote.
The nine-percentage point advantage for Democrats is a six-point gain for the party when compared to results from a March UMass Lowell/You Gov poll of 1,000 American adults that asked the same question.
Fielded between Oct. 2 and Oct. 4, the new national survey of 1,000 likely voters carries a margin of error of +/- 3.84 percentage points. Early voting is already underway in many states in the Nov. 3 midterm election.
Voters may be more inclined to consider Democratic candidates given their view of President Donald Trump and the state of the country, according to UMass Lowell’s John Cluverius, director of survey research in the UMass Lowell Center for Public Opinion and associate professor of political science. Thirty-nine percent of respondents approve of Trump’s job performance, a figure unchanged from findings in the March poll. And, a majority of respondents in the current poll, 64%, said the country is on the wrong track, similar to the 67% of polltakers who responded the same way to the same question in the March survey.
“Voters are blaming Republicans for the state of the nation; Democrats now lead by more in the generic House ballot than in any poll we’ve conducted. Voters may not have fully abandoned the president, but they are leaving his allies in Congress in droves,” Cluverius said.
Respondents blame Trump policies for economic pain
Almost two-thirds of likely voters in the current poll said the Iran war (64%) or tariffs (9%) are the primary source of higher fuel and utility prices. Opposition to the Iran war remains high, with 71% of polltakers responding that the country is spending too much on it.
Fifty-eight percent of respondents said it has become harder to pay for basic necessities in the last six months, while 33% said things have stayed about the same.
“The war in Iran stands out as exceptionally unpopular, not only among Democrats, but also among Republicans, with 1 in 4 saying it has made us less safe and 4 in 10 saying we should not continue to fund it,” said UMass Lowell Professor Joshua Dyck, the center’s director and chair of the university’s Political Science Department. “Those surveyed also are connecting the dots to the war and the issue of affordability, with voters more likely to blame the war (64%) than anything else for higher fuel and utility prices. If the Republicans lose the Congress in the midterms, it will be primarily because of Iran.”
Respondents wary of AI, tech CEOs
Polltakers expressed misgivings about the use of artificial intelligence and the leaders of big technology companies. Among respondents, 70% oppose the construction in their community of a data center that supports AI computing. Fifty-one percent of respondents support a national ban on construction or expansion of AI data centers, compared with 48% who oppose such a measure. More than half of respondents (52%) said that artificial intelligence technologies will do more to harm humanity than help it. Less than a third of respondents (30%) said AI will do more to help humanity.
Tech industry leaders receive poor marks in the poll. Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, is the least favorably viewed American in the survey, with a net favorability rating of -38, slightly higher than his -43 net favorability in the March poll. Other tech leaders are viewed negatively, as well. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has a net favorability of -14 among respondents, although he is viewed favorably among self-identified Republicans in the survey (+60).
“Our poll reveals widespread skepticism about artificial intelligence, both as a technology and as an industry. A majority of likely voters believes AI will do more harm than good, while 7 in 10 oppose the construction of an AI data center in their community,” said UMass Lowell Political Science Associate Professor Rodrigo Castro Cornejo, the center’s associate director. “This skepticism extends to the leaders of major technology companies, who are viewed negatively by voters. These findings reveal a striking disconnect between the rapid expansion of AI and a public that remains deeply skeptical of its benefits and distrustful of those driving its development.”
2028 vs. 2024: A hypothetical look ahead and back
Poll respondents signaled their support of several potential 2028 presidential candidates through a series of questions that offered hypothetical matchups. California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom had a slight advantage against Republican Vice President JD Vance, 46% to 42%. A matchup between Newsom and Republican U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and another contest between U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Vance find each of those hypothetical races about even, while a hypothetical matchup between Ocasio-Cortez and Rubio is tied at 43% support each.
Responses to a hypothetical matchup between presidential sons Hunter Biden and Donald Trump Jr. found 37% of polltakers would support Biden and 36% would support Trump. In this matchup, 9% of respondents said they would not vote in such a contest.
Finally, in a question that asked how respondents would vote given the chance to go back in time to cast a ballot in the 2024 presidential election, 51% said they would support Democratic candidate and former Vice President Kamala Harris, while 43% said they would vote for Trump. Trump won the popular vote in 2024, 50% to 48%.
Funded by UMass Lowell, the nonpartisan online survey was designed and analyzed by the university’s Center for Public Opinion and fielded by YouGov. Detailed poll results, including topline and full methodology, are available at www.uml.edu/polls.
Marking its 15th anniversary year, the Center for Public Opinion at UMass Lowell presents events and conducts polling on political and social issues to provide opportunities for civic engagement, experiential learning and real-world research. The center is a member of the American Association of Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) Transparency Initiative.