Some policies enacted more recently appear to be accelerating this trend

Published October 25, 2026 6:00AM (EDT)

Founder of Amazon and Blue Origin Jeff Bezos attends a luncheon following inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump at the U.S. Capitol on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

This article was originally published on The Conversation .

The buzzword of the 2026 U.S. midterm elections may be affordability , but growing anger over inequality is behind the sentiment.

A Pew Research survey released in October 2026 found that roughly 6 in 10 Americans – including 4 in 10 Republicans – believe there’s too much inequality in the U.S. And a growing share from both major political parties state that the economy needs to be fundamentally rebuilt to address this.

This sentiment has, however, been difficult to convert into political results.…