A new Gallup poll released Monday shows Republicans with a record 10-point edge over Democrats on the "generic ballot" test — the question of whether voters prefer a Democratic or Republican congressional candidate. It’s the largest GOP polling edge at this stage in the 68 years of the generic ballot poll,
Politico first reported.
The news is so discouraging that an increasing number of Democratic strategists now say privately that they fear the House is already lost, Politico reports.
The Gallup poll, coming at the end of a brutal August for Democrats and President Barack Obama, reinforces the rapidly forming prevailing view that the horizon is as bleak for Democrats as it ever has been.
The 51-41 percent edge Republicans have now represents the largest Republican edge heading into a midterm election since the poll was first conducted in the 1942 election cycle, giving them greater reason for optimism than in the weeks leading up to their 1952 and 1994 House takeovers. It also represents a stunning reversal from the 6-point lead Democrats posted in the poll in mid-July.
"You have millions of Americans worried about the economy, jobs, deficits, their children's future, and we're out there talking about what - Bush, Iraq?" Chris Kofinis, a longtime Democratic strategist, told Politico. "Our message needs to be more positive, more hopeful, more focused, and we need talk to the economic reality of everyday Americans and their families. There is time to pivot, but we're just not there yet."
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