GOP edge in race for House control slips: poll

Republicans’ advantage in the race for control of the House of Representatives in the midterm elections is slightly shrinking, according to a new survey.

A CBS News poll released Sunday estimates that Republicans will win 226 House seats in November, which is down from 230 seats estimated last month.

Abortion rights, gas prices, former President Trump’s possible reelection bid and concerns about “extreme” candidates are among the issues hindering Republicans’ chances in the midterms, pollsters noted.

Abortion has become a leading election issue following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

The new CBS News poll found that 65 percent of women surveyed are still expressing concerns that Republicans will prioritize abortion restrictions if they gain power.

Additionally, the survey found that likely voters said by more than a 2-to-1 margin that they would vote to support abortion rights rather than oppose them.

While just under 50 percent of all voters said their vote is not about Trump, voters are paying close attention to the search at the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate.

The poll found that 85 percent of Democrats and 59 percent of independents said that they see the search as an “attempt to protect national security.” Eighty percent of Republicans, however, see it as a “political attack on Trump.”

And with 53 percent of registered voters saying that gas prices in their area have gone down, their views on President Biden’s handling of the economy have improved slightly. Biden’s job approval, which considers the economy, inflation and gas prices, rose to 45 percent, a 3 percentage point increase from July.

The poll of 2,126 registered voters, which was conducted between Aug. 24 and Aug. 26, has a margin of error of 2.4 percentage points.