A new poll conducted by NBC News/The Wall Street Journal estimates that only 39% of U.S. voters want Republicans to keep control of Congress in 2018, whereas roughly 50% want Democrats to regain the majority vote. Not since 2008 has the public felt so partial toward a Democrat-controlled Congress.
The poll also contains hopeful news when it comes to the engagement levels Democrats can expect from their supporters in next year’s midterm elections — 59% of Democratic voters who responded to the survey said they are highly interested in 2018 elections, versus 49% of Republican voters who said the same.
Especially of note is the finding that seniors favor Democrats by four points, as do men by two points.
new NBC/WSJ poll: Democrats now hold largest advantage over Republicans in preference for Congress since 2008 – 50%-39%
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— John Harwood (@JohnJHarwood) December 17, 2017
After Democrat Doug Jones’ surprise win in Alabama’s senatorial race last week, as well as the slew of Republicans who were unseated by Democrats — mostly women — in Virginia, New Jersey, and New York in early November, this new poll is just the latest sign of just how serious the pushback against the GOP and its agenda is.
Though there is still a long way to go before the public casts its votes in next year’s midterm elections and plenty of things will happen until then, Democrats currently have a stronger chance of clinching the majority than their opponents. According to FiveThirtyEight’s model, at the time of this writing, Democrats have a 48.7% chance of winning, versus Republicans who have odds of 37.6%.
