“What we're seeing is significant, and increasing, concern from Americans of all political stripes about falling short financially during retirement,” said Bill McInturff, founder and partner of Public Opinion Strategies, one of the organizations that conducted the ASR survey. “Not only are Americans concerned about their own financial health, but they also express widespread concern over how the continued contentious debate in Washington could further undermine what they are planning for in retirement. Even those who feel we must make dramatic cuts to deal with the debt think Congress needs to identify concrete ways to help Americans deal with further retirement instability.”

Almost nine in 10 respondents said they were concerned about "being able to maintain a comfortable standard of living throughout retirement." Demographically, the response was across the board, above 80% whether the respondent is white, African-American or Hispanic, and they did not have investments or had over $100,000 in investments.

Meanwhile, 88 % of voters view tax incentives to help save for retirement as important. This includes 81% of Tea Party supporters, 83% of Republicans, 86% of independents and 94% of Democrats.

“We commissioned this poll to illustrate the overwhelming anxiety that exists about having the means to live comfortably in retirement,” said Shannon Hunt, ASR executive director. “As policymakers look for ways to address our national debt, they must find ways to generate peace of mind among Americans as they look toward retirement. Promoting solutions that provide guaranteed lifetime income—for example, annuities—would go a long way toward balancing these concerns.”