Health has emerged as the top priority for NSW voters, as the Coalition deals with a problematic new public-private hospital and Labor campaigns on funding hospitals instead of stadiums.

About one in five voters identified health and hospitals as their number one priority, new polling for the Herald shows, while 18 per cent said managing the state's finances was most important to them.

Health and hospitals have emerged as the top priority for voters. Credit:Glenn Hunt

A Ucomms/Reachtel state-wide poll of more than 1500 people asked voters to identify which issues were the most important to them when deciding how to vote.

Population and the environment were also key issues, followed by law and order and the cost of living. Schools and transport were ranked the lowest, the polling showed.