New Poll: Voters Overwhelmingly Want Elected Officials to Support Small Businesses

Washington, D.C.— A vast majority of Americans support small businesses and small business friendly policies. They believe by dramatic margins that the success of small businesses is better for their families and the economy than the success of large corporations, and it’s personally important to them that local small businesses in their communities thrive, according to a new survey. 

The national opinion poll, which is a sampling of likely 2026 midterm voters, finds 73% say the success of small businesses is better for their families and 83% believe it’s better for the economy than the success of large corporations, while 89% say the success of small business is important to them personally. 

The survey also reveals that three-quarters of voters say conditions have worsened for small businesses over the past year, with a bipartisan majority agreeing that the overall cost of living is rising and that small businesses are bearing the brunt of those growing costs (94% of Democrats, 80% of independents and 59% of Republicans agree). Respondents say that tariffs, unfair competition, the cost of healthcare and tax equity are among the top concerns small businesses are facing. 

Voters across the political spectrum say they are much more likely to support candidates who address small business affordability challenges, stand up for small businesses against monopolies and favor small business friendly policies such as making healthcare more accessible. In fact, 91% (including 73% of independents and 64% of Republicans) are more likely to vote for a candidate who would support policies reducing the cost of healthcare including prescription drugs, and 91% (including 62% of independents and 54% of Republicans) are more likely to vote for a candidate who believes small businesses should be able to access affordable healthcare for themselves and their employees.

“From tariffs, to high healthcare costs to immigration actions that reduce the labor force, it’s a challenging time to be a small business owner,” said Mike Roach, co-owner of Paloma Clothing in Portland, Ore. “It’s encouraging to know that the vast majority of voters support small business owners like me and want to see elected officials champion policies that are pro-small business instead of cozying up to the big businesses that can afford to shower politicians with campaign contributions.” 

The survey also found voters across party lines are supportive of statements that highlight the need to level the playing field for small businesses with 96% of Democrats, three-quarters of independents and 64% of Republicans convinced that elected officials should fight for small businesses instead of large corporations. 

“Americans don’t agree on much across party lines these days, but our polling shows voters overwhelmingly support America’s small businesses – and that support remains strong regardless of party identification,” said Small Business Majority Founder & CEO John Arensmeyer. “Therefore, it’s not surprising that voters say they are far more likely to vote for candidates for public office who support pro-small business policies. This is notable because we often see candidates pay lip service to how much they value small businesses, then they vote for policies that harm small firms or fail to stand up for Main Street in tough times. Hopefully, this polling will send a clear message to candidates that supporting small businesses, and vociferously articulating that support, is good for them electorally and good for our country as a whole.”

Small Business Majority’s poll reflects a survey of 1,000 likely 2026 midterm voters nationwide. Many respondents report connections to small businesses: 34% say they are either a current or retired entrepreneur or have a current or retired entrepreneur in their household. The poll was designed and administered by Lake Research Partners, and was conducted Feb. 23 – March 2, 2026 by live telephone and text-to-online interviews in English as well as Spanish. The margin of error for the full sample is +/- 3.1% at a 95% confidence level.