Hatred for President Donald Trump has energized Democrats and helped boost turnout ahead of the 2018 midterm elections, but Democratic pollster Mark Penn told The Hill on Tuesday that momentum and message might not be enough to win races.
"If you're just looking at the Democratic Party, the Democratic Party now is being animated by Trump hatred," Penn said on The Hill.TV's show "What America's Thinking."
"That is the No. 1 turnout vehicle through the next election – now, that faltered for Hillary [Clinton]," he added, referring to her surprising loss to Trump in the 2016 presidential election.
Clinton swamped Trump in the popular vote, but Trump won the electoral college votes by a landslide and took swing states like Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida.
Democrats have a strong chance of recapturing the House this November – they need to pick up 23 seats in order to upend Republicans as the majority party – and even have a shot at winning back the Senate, but several recent polls have shown Republicans closing the gap.
But Trump does not seem concerned – as the president has privately dismissed fears from GOP leaders of losing Congress this fall.
"That's not going to happen," Trump said "at different points" during a dinner conversation this month with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and White House legislative director Marc Short, The New York Times reported in late April.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.