WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 16th July, 2020) Half of Americans either identify themselves as Democrats or independent voters who lean Democratic, giving the party an edge in efforts to take control of the Senate and defeat President Donald Trump's bid for a second term in the November elections, according to a Gallup polling report on Thursday.
"Democrats appear to be as strong politically now as they were in 2018 when they reclaimed the majority in the House of Representatives and gained seven governorships they previously did not hold. If the strong current Democratic positioning holds through Election Day, Democrats could build off those 2018 successes to possibly win the presidency and Senate in 2020," a press release explaining the report said.
During the Senate impeachment trial in January and February that acquitted Trump, the Republican Party enjoyed a 2 point edge. But as the novel coronavirus pandemic hit the United States in March, voter preferences shifted and Democrats initially gained a 2 point advantage, the report said.
In Gallup's latest survey, Democrats held an 11 percentage points advantage over Republican, with half of those surveyed either calling themselves Democrats or Democratic-leaning independent voters.
Apart from the pandemic, the biggest shift toward Democrats took place following the May 25 death of African-American George Floyd while in police custody, according to the report.
Gallup based the report on monthly averages of telephone surveys throughout 2020.
