Dems gain slight edge in public preference for control of Congress: poll

When it comes to who the public would prefer to control Congress, Democrats seem to have made some slight inroads — at least according to a new Monmouth University poll released Wednesday.

Per the poll's results, 38 percent of respondents want Democrats to maintain control of Congress, while 12 percent lean that way. Meanwhile, 34 percent of respondents said they'd prefer Republicans take control of the Hill, while 9 percent reported leaning that way.

Overall, support for Democrats rose to 50 percent from 47 percent in June and 44 percent in May, The Hill reports, per Monmouth. Republican support dropped to 43 percent from 47 percent in June and 48 percent in May.

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All that said, don't think Dems are out of the woods just yet. "Recent events, such as the Jan. 6th committee hearings and Supreme Court decisions, seem to have generated a bit more energy for the Democrats, but it is not clear that this is actual momentum, said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute. "It may simply be ongoing volatility in a public largely unhappy with the way things are going in Washington."

The Monmouth University Polling Institute surveyed 808 adults from July 28 to Aug. 1, 2022. Results have a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points. See more results at Monmouth University.