After weeks of Republican chances of retaining their Senate majority appearing to be what he called “a bit dicey,” pollster Scott Rasmussen said Wednesday morning that all signs point to the GOP not only keeping the majority in November “but probably gaining one seat.”
In an exclusive interview with Newsmax, the veteran pollster and digital media magnate agreed that one key factor in the improved Republican chances in Senate races is the strong response of the party’s “grass roots” to the confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
Three days after Kavanaugh was confirmed by a vote of 50-to-48 in the Senate, the confirmation is clearly an issue in Senate contests nationwide. During a televised debate in Indiana this week, for example, GOP Senate nominee Steve Braun called the Kavanaugh nomination “the great separator” between himself and Democratic Sen. Joe Donnelly.
Donnelly countered that, while he did vote “no” on Kavanaugh, he did support Trump’s first nominee to the high court, Justice Neil Gorsuch.
Rasmussen, editor-at-large for Ballotpedia, said that chances of Republicans maintaining their majority in the U.S. House “were probably about one in five”— perhaps “a little better than a month before, but not much.”
We asked Rasmussen about recent reports that the efforts of pop star Taylor Swift had helped register more than 100,000 new young voters and what effect it would have on the elections.
“Going back to the 18-year-olds getting the vote in the early 1970’s, I have always heard that there will be a big wave of young voters coming to the polls,” said Rasmussen, “It hasn’t happened so far.”
John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.
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