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Slight majority want Democrats to retake power in 2018, poll says

By Ed Adamczyk
A poll Wednesday indicated that 52 percent of respondents prefer control of Congress return to the Democratic Party next year. File Photo by Molly Riley/UPI
A poll Wednesday indicated that 52 percent of respondents prefer control of Congress return to the Democratic Party next year. File Photo by Molly Riley/UPI | License Photo

July 19 (UPI) -- A small majority of registered voters want the Democrats to return to power in next year's midterm elections, a Washington Post-ABC News poll released Wednesday showed.

While 38 percent of respondents say they prefer Republican control of Congress after 2018, to help enact President Donald Trump's agenda, 52 percent prefer Democratic control.

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Trump's approval rating sank to 36 percent this month, down from 42 percent in April, but the poll indicates that slide has not yet resulted in enthusiasm for possible Democratic candidates.

The survey also showed that more Republicans said they plan to vote in the next election.

Sixty-five percent of Republican and GOP-leaning independent voters said they will vote, compared to 57 percent of Democrat and Democrat-leaning independents.

The GOP currently has a 24-seat majority in the House and a two-seat majority in the Senate. Historically, the party in the White House tends to lose congressional seats in midterm elections.

The poll suggests reasons the slide in Trump's approval may not translate into votes for Democrats. Only six in 10 respondents who "strongly disapprove" of Trump's job performance say they will vote in 2018, compared to 72 percent of those who support Trump. Only 24 percent said their 2018 vote will be used to "oppose Trump," compared to 20 percent who intend to use their congressional vote in support of him.

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This Washington Post-ABC News poll was conducted from July 10-13, prior to the collapse of the GOP health care plan, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

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