Corruption Is Becoming An Increasingly Relevant Issue For Voters. Over 1 In 3 Chose Is As The Top One.

Corruption in government topped economic concerns in a new survey as voters head into the midterm elections on November 3.

The poll, conducted by CNBC, found that 36 percent of voters said that government corruption was the most important issue in the election. The cost of food and groceries came in second at 34 percent.

However, the network acknowledged that several economic issues were separated into different categories and, if lumped together, might still make the economy the top issue. But the poll still found that concerns about government corruption have been rising and have become a much more relevant issue for the electorate.

Politico noted earlier in October that the Democrats were increasingly focusing on corruption and apparent conflicts of interest within government.

The website cited a memo from Blue Rose Research and the Democratic-aligned Winning Jobs Narrative Action. The memo stated that Democrats who tied corruption to housing, health care, and the cost-of-living increase voter support by about 3 percentage points.

"As November draws near, some Democratic candidates are experimenting with ways to connect these seemingly separate issues into a broader economic story," the memo states. "Texas Senate candidate James Talarico has offered perhaps the clearest formulation: 'We have an affordability crisis because we have a corruption crisis.'"

Recent polls suggest that the messaging shift might have broken through with some voters.

A Fox News poll from mid-October found that the cost of living was the top economic worry of voters, by a wide margin. The network reported that 60 percent of voters cited it as their top economic worry.

However, the same poll found that corruption was voters top concern, with 60 percent saying they were extremely concerned. The next two biggest concerns were inflation and gas prices at 58 percent and 50 percent, respectively.

The CNBC poll found that voters preferred Democrats by four points to handle corruption over Republicans. However, that margin increased based on how important the issue was to the voter.

If a voter said corruption was their top issue, they favored Democrats by 17 points. Also, independent voters preferred Democrats by 15 points.

Brian Lemek, executive of the Democrat-backing political action committee Defend the Vote told CNBC that voters are "making the connection between this corrupt and broken system and their high costs."

"It's the only thing people are talking about right now," Lemek told the network.