Political Hotsheet
By

Stephanie Condon /

CBS News/ September 7, 2010, 10:09 AM

Polls Offer Grim Outlook for Democrats in November

CBS/ AP

A series of polls released today paint a grim picture for Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections. Likely voters surveyed say they favor Republicans over Democrats, and they trust the GOP more to handle issues like the economy.

In a Washington Post/ABC News poll, 53 percent of likely voters said they would vote for the Republican candidate in their district if the midterm elections were today, while 40 percent would vote for the Democrat. (Worth noting: the two parties are nearly tied when it comes to the preferences of voters overall, not just likely voters.)

Among voters overall, independents -- a critical voting bloc -- say they would support Republican over Democratic candidates in their House districts by a 13-point margin.

And 55 percent of voters overall in the poll said it's more important to have Republicans lead Congress to serve as a check on President Obama's agenda than to have Democrats in control to support Mr. Obama's agenda. Just 39 percent said the opposite.

Meanwhile, a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll showed voters split, 43 percent to 43 percent, about whether they favored a Republican-controlled Congress or a Democratically-controlled Congress. Likely voters, however, favor a Republican-controlled Congress, 49 percent to 40 percent.

The economic outlook among those surveyed by the Wall Street Journal is pessimistic -- just 26 percent think the economy is going to get better in the next year, down from 47 percent a year earlier. As many as 61 percent say the country is on the wrong track.

A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released today shows that 46 percent of Americans say that Republicans in Congress would do a better job dealing with the economy, compared with 43 percent who say Democrats would do a better job. While the results are within the poll's margin of error, independents favor Republicans on the issue by 51 percent to 32 percent.

CBSNews.com Special Report: Campaign 2010

The Post/ABC poll shows voters favoring Republicans over Democrats on the economy by 43 percent to 39 percent. While it is a small advantage, this is the first time this poll has found Republicans to have any lead on the economy since 2002.

Perceptions about the president do not appear to be helping Democrats. The Wall Street Journal poll puts Mr. Obama's approval rating at 45 percent, with 49 percent disapproving.

The margin is wider in the Post/ABC poll, in which 46 percent of Americans approve of the job of the president is doing, but 52 percent disapprove. Among independents surveyed, 57 percent disapproved of the job Mr. Obama is doing.

The polling outcomes suggest Republicans could very well take control of the House -- something three professors are predicting after running a series of simulations of the elections. Republicans have a 79 percent chance of winning the House, according to Professors Joseph Bafumi of Dartmouth College, Robert Erikson of Columbia University and Christopher Wlezien of Temple University. Their model suggests the most likely scenario is for Democrats to lose 50 seats this November, leaving Republicans with a 229-206 advantage.

© 2010 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.
265 Comments Add a Comment
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rangerrebew says:
First of all, idiot, your grammar is terrible. Secondly, only a racist could see racism in everything. You're probably upset milk is white.
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G H M says:
You can see a lot of Fox news brain drain at work here. Good grief they all sing the same song ??hate the black guy for no other reason then he?s black.
Well that black guy did more for the United States and the people in the last two years they Bush and Reagan did in their combined 16 years in office. Check the record fox heads.
The dem will do good in November.
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arlenice5 says:
OBAMA I TOXIC TO AMERICA AND TO HIS DEMOCRATIC PARTY!

REPUBLICANS WILL WIN!

DEMOCRATS WILL LOSE!

DEMOCRATS KNOW THAT OBAMA IS SO OUT OF REALITY THAT THE DEMOCRATS DON'T WANT OBAMA TO TO RALLY ON THEIR BEHALF. THEY CONSIDER HIM TOXIC! THAT SAYS EVERYTHING!

OBAMA IS A LIAR. PELOSI IS A LIAR, GIBBS IS A LIAR, HARRY REID IS A LIAR, ETC. ETC. ETC.

IS THERE ANYBODY IN THE WHITE HOUSE WHO CAN LOOK AT AMERICANS STRAIGHT IN THE FACE AND SPEAK THE TRUTH? I DOUBT IT!.

REPUBLICAS MUST WIN. DEMOCRATS MUST GO ASAP! AND OBAMA TOO.
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noloyalisti says:
This post is a little too long for this venue, but it is very right on. Don't believe the corporation propaganda: THEY are the ones who want to spread the false rumors that people want more of the same as we had during the Bushoccio Crime Family and GOP criminal conspiracy.

Remember: history only repeats itself if we let it. Vote Democratic and keep the cockroaches where they belong.
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jxknowles says:
There will only be marginable losses to either party in November. Having owned and worked for polling organizations most of my career, they are increasingly undependable and inaccurate. GOP hopefuls are hinging their bets on Democrats not showing up. The same people who voted in 2008 are voting in 2010. That never changes.
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bradkt1 says:
All of these polls are based on a "likely voter" scenario.

The hard truth is very simple...if Democrats turn out and vote, they'll win.

If not...well...
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farmertommy says:
When people ask you to vote republican?
Ask them if they slept through the last 40 years?
Carter put the country on the road to energy independence,
Reagan destroyed that!
Clinton left a balanced budget and a surplus,
...Bush destroyed that and Lied us into a stupid war!
Obama gave us reform, health care, finance, education,
the republicans have sabotaged everything he did.
HIS congress passed single payer health care the republican controlled senate destroyed that.
You can Tell them to look it up, but they won't they are republicans.
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Dave_P6 says:
DEMS, PLEASE GET OUT THERE AND VOTE. DON'T LET REPUBLICANS TAKE THE MAJORITY IN THE HOUSE/SENATE.
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tiredofeverything says:
"and they trust the GOP more to handle issues like the economy."

If that's true, it's simply proof that Americans are incapable of learning.
Giving the keys back to the driver that drove you off the cliff in the first place... brilliant... and they wonder why so many people look down on America... even an animal knows enough not to sh|t on it's own plate... but apparently Americans don't lol
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troutfishyman says:
by Nmmrng September 7, 2010 12:58 PM EDT
George Washington established the custom of "mister" when asked how he should be addressed. He thought it important to remember that the president was a citizen and not a monarch.





Yep, and George rode a horse. Those days are gone, and it is not current custom.
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