Poll: Voters demand change and a check on Trump, fueling a steep Democratic midterm advantage

Democrats enter the final days before the midterm elections with a clear edge in the fight for Congress, according to a new NBC News poll taken Oct. 28 to Oct. 30. Registered voters favor a Democratic-run Congress 52% to 45%, a gap two points wider than a month earlier, and independents lean Democratic by 21 points. Three percent are undecided, which could matter in tight House and Senate contests.

President Donald Trump is the main drag on Republicans. Sixty percent disapprove of him, the highest reading of either of his terms in this polling, while 40% approve. About three in four voters are unhappy with the economy, and 64% say he has not met their expectations, including a third of those who backed him. Seventy percent think the country is on the wrong track. For the first time in three decades of NBC polling, a majority, 51%, are dissatisfied with their own finances.

Still, the picture is mixed for Democrats. Their party is viewed favorably by only 29%, versus 38% for Republicans, and the parties run about even on handling key issues. Republicans in GOP-held districts and states Trump carried remain largely loyal.

Summarized by PolitiKool from NBC News’s reporting. Read the full story at NBC News →