Even fewer voters, however, call abortion their No. 1 concern. In the New York Times/Siena poll, just 5% of registered voters name abortion or women's rights as the single most important problem facing the country, ranking it behind the economy (20%), inflation (15%), democracy and political divisions (11%) and gun policies (10%).

THE QUESTION: Litmus test (for instance "Thinking about how this issue might affect your vote for major offices, would you only vote for a candidate who shares your views, consider a candidate's position as just one of many important factors when voting, or not see it as a major issue?")

What it can tell us: More than the questions about priorities, the litmus test question attempts to understand the way a specific issue is likely to play into voters' actual decision-making processes, asking them to decide whether or not it's important enough to play a determining role in their choice. Even that question, however, is more complicated than it might seem. For one thing, increased ideological cohesion among both politicians and ordinary Americans mean that most voters' views on a given topic are often likely to match up with the party they'd be voting for anyway.

Even fewer voters, however, call abortion their No. 1 concern. In the New York Times/Siena poll, just 5% of registered voters name abortion or women's rights as the single most important problem facing the country, ranking it behind the economy (20%), inflation (15%), democracy and political divisions (11%) and gun policies (10%).

THE QUESTION: Litmus test (for instance "Thinking about how this issue might affect your vote for major offices, would you only vote for a candidate who shares your views, consider a candidate's position as just one of many important factors when voting, or not see it as a major issue?")

What it can tell us: More than the questions about priorities, the litmus test question attempts to understand the way a specific issue is likely to play into voters' actual decision-making processes, asking them to decide whether or not it's important enough to play a determining role in their choice. Even that question, however, is more complicated than it might seem. For one thing, increased ideological cohesion among both politicians and ordinary Americans mean that most voters' views on a given topic are often likely to match up with the party they'd be voting for anyway.