NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist Poll: Kavanaugh Confirmation Battle Has Caused Democratic Enthusiasm Edge to Evaporate

DON’T LOOK NOW BUT DEMOCRATS HAVE AWOKE A SLEEPING REPUBLICAN GIANT AND THEY ARE PEEVED …

With just about a month before the 2018 midterm elections, a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll shows that the once overwhelming lead in enthusiasm by Democrats has all but evaporated. The 10 point gap in July is only a 2 point one as Republicans have narrowed the gap. What is different? The Brett Kavanaugh confirmation of course. Republicans are irate over how Democrats have handled this process and the treatment of Kavanaugh. The result is that the Kavanaugh appointment to the SCOTUS is now a campaign issue and Democrat senators in red states won by President Donald Trump in 2016 are how in big trouble.

Just over a month away from critical elections across the country, the wide Democratic enthusiasm advantage that has defined the 2018 campaign up to this point has disappeared, according to a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll.

In July, there was a 10-point gap between the number of Democrats and Republicans saying the November elections were “very important.” Now, that is down to 2 points, a statistical tie.

Democrats’ advantage on which party’s candidate they are more likely to support has also been cut in half since last month. Democrats still retain a 6-point edge on that question, but it was 12 points after a Marist poll conducted in mid-September.