A new NBC/Wall Street Journal survey finds half of Americans want Democrats to control Congress. It’s the largest advantage for Democrats since before the 2008 midterm elections.
Just 39% of Americans say Republicans should control Congress, compared to 50% who say Democrats should be in charge. That 11-point gap is the second largest since 2006. In 2008, Democrats won the White House and picked up a substantial number of seats in the House and Senate.
NBC News says these numbers indicate we’re heading into what could be a very dangerous political environment for Republicans during the 2018 midterm elections.
The NBC/WSJ poll also shows Democrats with the intensity advantage, with 59 percent of Democratic voters saying they have a high level of interest in next year’s elections (registering either a 9 or 10 on a 10-point scale), versus 49 percent of Republican voters saying the same thing.
“A double-digit margin here is an important indicator of Democratic intensity,” said Republican pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies, who conducted this survey with Democratic pollsters from Hart Research Associates.
And the NBC/WSJ poll — which was conducted right after Democrats’ surprising Senate victory in Alabama — finds President Donald Trump’s job approval rating at 41 percent among all Americans, which is up three points from October, while 56 percent of Americans disapprove.
“All in all, I think a 41 percent Trump approval and an +11D lead in the control of Congress definitely puts control of the Senate and the House as more doable for Democrats in 2018,” said Democratic pollster Fred Yang of Hart Research Associates.
