Missouri: McCaskill Holds Narrow Lead Over Hawley

Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., is leading Republican challenger Josh Hawley by a narrow margin in the critical race to hold her Senate seat, a new NBC News/Marist poll release Monday shows.

In the head-to-head matchup, McCaskill drew 50 percent of support from likely voters, while Hawley drew 47 percent.

When the question added Libertarian candidate Japheth Campbell and Green Party candidate Jo Crain, the margin remained the same, with 47 percent for McCaskill and 44 percent for Hawley, reports CNBC.

In both cases, McCaskill's lead fell within the survey's 5.2 percentage point margin of error.

McCaskill is widely considered as one of the Senate's most vulnerable members, after President Donald Trump took Missouri by almost 20 percentage points in the 2016 election.

Meanwhile, likely voters have positive views of both McCaskill and Hawley:

• 49 percent see McCaskill favorably; 45 percent unfavorably.

• 45 percent see Hawley favorably; 42 percent unfavorably.

The confirmation proceedings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh may also have an impact on the Missouri race, with 42 percent saying they're likely to back a candidate who supported him and 35 percent who say they would not. McCaskill opposed his confirmation.

The NBC/Marist live-caller poll was conducted Oct. 30 through Nov. 1 of 1,016 adults, with a margin of error of 3.9 percentage points, included 920 registered voters, with a margin of error of 4.1 points, and 600 likely voters, with a margin of 5.2 points.

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