GOP leads in generic congressional ballot by 2 points: WSJ poll

Republicans lead Democrats by 2 points on a generic congressional ballot with Election Day just one week away, according to a new survey. 

A Wall Street Journal poll released Tuesday found 46 percent of registered voters polled would vote for a GOP candidate for Congress if the election was held today, and 44 percent would vote for a Democratic one. 

The GOP’s lead is within the margin of error but an improvement for the party from the Journal’s August poll, which found Democrats leading by 3 points. 

Pollsters found that abortion appears to have become less important of an issue than it was during the summer. Democrats started closing a gap with Republicans in the aftermath of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in June, but inflation and economic concerns have remained the top issues that voters list in polls leading up to the midterms. 

“The focus on the economic stuff, particularly inflation, is helpful to the GOP headed into the final stretch,” said GOP pollster Tony Fabrizio, who conducted the poll along with Democratic pollster John Anzalone. 

Almost half of all voters said they believe congressional Republicans can best get inflation under control, while only about a quarter said congressional Democrats are best able to do it. 

The poll also found that Republicans have more enthusiasm to vote than Democrats. 

The Journal reported that the GOP has also seen an improvement in its standing among Latino voters and women. 

Republicans led among white suburban women by 15 points, a shift of 26 points away from Democrats since the August poll the Journal conducted. 

Democrats are seeking to avoid a historical trend that sees the president’s party usually lose seats in Congress during the midterm elections. Republicans only need to gain a few seats in the House and one seat in the Senate to take control of each body. 

The poll was conducted from Oct. 22 to 26 among 1,500 registered voters. The margin of error was 2.5 percentage points.