WASHINGTON, D.C.—Growing income inequality and poverty are having a significant impact on the perceptions of voters during the 2012 election season, with 88 percent of likely voters saying that a candidate’s position on poverty is important when deciding who to support for president, according to new polling data released today by Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity.

The data were presented at a major forum – The Politics of Economic Opportunity: Will Growing Poverty Affect Election 2012? – which brought together a nationally renowned, bi-partisan group of political strategists, pollsters and journalists to debate the impact of rising poverty on campaign strategy and media coverage during the 2012 elections. The forum, sponsored by Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity, with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, drew more than 200 advocates, policymakers, foundation leaders and members of the media.

Panelists included E.J. Dionne and Michael Gerson, op-ed columnists for The Washington Post, Pam Fessler, correspondent for National Public Radio, Bob Herbert, former columnist for The New York Times, Neera Tanden, president of the Center for American Progress, and prominent pollsters and political strategists, Celinda Lake, Jim McLaughlin and David Winston. The panel discussions were moderated by John Harris, editor-in-chief of Politico, and Clarence Page, nationally syndicated columnist for the Chicago Tribune.

While the problems of low-income Americans have received little attention during recent elections, participants in today’s forum noted that deepening concerns about income inequality could push the issue to the front burner of political debate during the 2012 campaign.

Several panelists said the Occupy Wall Street movement has helped focus public attention on the issue. "It has succeeded where politicians have failed….The conversation has shifted dramatically," said Tanden.

Panelists agreed that the media can play a critical role in elevating issues around poverty and income inequality during the election and beyond. "The media should not be making the issue more politicized, but should be revealing what the actual struggles are for people living in poverty," said Gerson.

However, speakers on both sides of the aisle said politicians and the media have not kept up with growing public interest in poverty and economic opportunity. "Politicians don't get it," said McLaughlin, a Republican pollster, adding that the focus needs to be on long-term solutions, "not just throwing money at the problem."

Herbert noted that despite growing interest in the subject, stories about poverty remain infrequent. "If there is a story about poor people in the New York Times or the Washington Post it is the exception….Covering Occupy Wall Street isn't covering poverty," he said.

The speaker’s views were supported by data from the Spotlight on Poverty poll.  Among the key findings:

• An overwhelming number of voters (88 percent) said a candidate’s position on protecting equal opportunity for all children no matter their race or ethnicity was an important factor in deciding who to support for president.

• When asked, “How important is a candidate’s position on poverty when deciding your vote for president?” a commanding majority (88 percent) said it was important.  Nearly half (45 percent) of likely voters said the issue was “very important.”

• Nearly half (49 percent) of all voters disagreed when asked if they had “heard enough from the presidential candidates about reducing poverty in America.”

• Half of all voters say the media has not spent an adequate amount of time during the presidential campaign covering the issue of reducing poverty in America.

• A candidate’s positions on poverty were significantly more important to non-white than white voters. Just 39 percent of white voters said those positions were “very important” compared with 67 percent of non-whites, including 76 percent of African Americans and 57 percent of Hispanics.

“This election should include more discussion of ways to place low-income families on the path toward greater self-sufficiency and success," said Patrick McCarthy, president and CEO of the Annie E. Casey Foundation. “We hope those seeking office in 2012 will promote proven policies to create opportunity for all children, including the millions of American children living in poverty.”

Sterling Spiern, president and CEO of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, called on the presidential candidates, their political advisors and the media to address the “overwhelming interest among voters in ensuring equal opportunity for children of all races. The public wants to know:  What, if anything, do the candidates have to say about addressing growing economic inequality and lack of opportunity in this country today?”

To view the entire Spotlight on Poverty survey click here. Spotlight is also hosting an online forum of the event, including video recordings, follow-up interviews with leading advocates and a discussion board.

For more information contact Amy Saltzman at 301-656-0348; 202-669-8494 (cell); asaltzman@thehatchergroup.com

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity: The Source for News, Ideas and Action is a non-partisan initiative that brings together diverse perspectives from the political, policy, advocacy and foundation communities to find genuine solutions to the economic hardship confronting millions of Americans. Through the ongoing exchange of ideas, research and data, Spotlight seeks to inform the policy debate about reducing poverty and increasing opportunity in the United States.

Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity was launched in October 2007 by major U.S. foundations, including founding partners The Annie E. Casey Foundation and Eos Foundation, to foster non-partisan debate during the 2008 campaign season about policy approaches for addressing poverty and opportunity. Since that time more than 25 major national foundations have joined what is now the leading non-partisan forum on poverty in the country. To learn more visit www.spotlightonpoverty.org.

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, founded in 1930 by breakfast cereal pioneer Will Keith Kellogg, is among the largest philanthropic foundations in the United States. Based in Battle Creek, Mich., WKKF works nationally and internationally, and engages with communities in priority places across the U.S., Mexico and Haiti to create conditions that propel vulnerable children to realize their full potential in school, work and life. To learn more, visit www.wkkf.org.