Congressional Democrats Have One Percent Lead, According To New Zogby Poll

Democrats have a razor thin lead going into the mid-term elections, according to a new poll compiled by Zogby International.

The poll, conducted between September 17 through the 20th, finds that 44 percent of voters would choose a generic Democrat in November’s Congressional elections while 43 percent would go with a generic Republican. Although it is just a one percent lead, it is the first poll since May that puts the Democrats ahead.

James Zogby, the head of Zogby international, attributed the upswing to President Barack Obama’s recent remarks on both the GOP and the possible extension of the Bush administration’s tax cuts.

“We’ll need to see these trends continue before drawing any conclusions, but it seems the Democrats have had a good week,” Zogby said in a statement.

In addition, Monday’s data shows that President Obama’s approval ratings have risen slightly to 49 percent, the highest since late February.

Struggling Economy Will Take Center Stage In November Say Experts

Sarah Mamula - Talk Radio News Service

Former Commerce Undersecretary for Economic Affairs Robert Shapiro expressed confidence Thursday that the Democratic Party will continue to hold the majority in Congress after the midterm elections.

According to the NDN, a progressive think tank and advocacy organization, the focus for the midterm elections in November is the struggling economy. President of NDN Simon Rosenberg said issues such as the clean energy and comprehensive immigration reform will creep just below the public’s radar.

Rosenberg believes that if the GOP were to gain seats in Congress, Republicans would need to adjust their current economic policy of “do nothing” and come up with alternatives.

“I don’t think this set of leaders, Boehner and McConnell, have the intellectual capacity [for] a real economic strategy because they have utterly failed to do so in the entire time they’ve been in office,” Rosenberg said.

Polls indicated that people voted for Obama and Democrats in 2008 due to the policies he planned to implement to revive the economy, but Shapiro said that economic progress made by the government will aid Democrats come September.

“The economy is certainly in much better shape than when the president took office,” said Shapiro.