Senate poll raises Republican hopes in Pennsylvania, Florida

Republicans have narrow leads in two Senate races they must win to hold the majority, according to a new poll released Tuesday.

In Florida, Quinnipiac University’s survey finds Sen. Marco Rubio (R) ahead of Rep. Patrick Murphy (D) by a slim, 2-point margin, at 49 percent to 47 percent. And in Pennsylvania, Sen. Patrick Toomey (R) leads Democrat Katie McGinty by a 49 percent to 45 percent margin, the poll found.

Democrats need a net gain of at least 5 seats to win 51-seat majority in the Senate and have placed high hopes on Pennsylvania, a state where their presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton, has consistently led Donald Trump in polls.

While Republicans are worried about Toomey, they are more confident about Florida. The Miami Herald reported on Tuesday that the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is pulling resources from the state, which could be a sign that they no longer think Murphy can win. 

The Quinnipiac survey also found that Sens. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio) could be headed for a cakewalk on Election Day.

Bennet leads local Republican county commissioner Darryl Glenn by a margin of 56 percent to 38 percent; Portman leads former Gov. Ted Strickland (D) by a margin of 54 percent to 41 percent. 

Quinnipiac surveyed more than 600 likely voters in each state on land lines and cellphones with margins of error at about 4 percent. The polling took place from Oct. 10 to 16.