Republican Senate candidates are gaining on their Democratic counterparts in new polling of competitive races, closing the support gaps in top contests that will decide which party holds control of the Senate and by how large of a majority.
Dave McCormick, the Republican candidate for Senate in Pennsylvania, tied longtime Sen. Bob Casey Jr., D-Penn., in top battleground state Pennsylvania, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS.
Casey’s advantages of being an incumbent and having a well known family with deep roots in Pennsylvania showed signs of faltering against McCormick’s campaign in the survey, with the two neck and neck at 46% each.
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Previous polling has shown McCormick trailing Casey to varying degrees, as analysts noted a name identification struggle for the former.
However, with less than 10 weeks until the general election, it appears voters — especially those in top battleground state Pennsylvania — are tuning in, and those who lean Republican are getting behind McCormick’s bid.
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Pennsylvania is not the only state where GOP contenders are getting closer to their opponents. In Arizona, former gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake presented a challenge to Rep. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., in the new poll, finishing only three percentage points behind him, 47% to 44%.
GOP candidates Eric Hovde in Wisconsin and former Rep. Mike Rogers in Michigan each also held their Democratic opponents’ leads to single digits. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., beat Hovde in the survey, 51% to 45%, while Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., managed to defeat Rogers, 47% to 41%.
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In Nevada, Ret. Army Capt. Sam Brown registered 10 points behind Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., who garnered 50% as she battles to hold onto her seat in the swing state.
The tightening races across the board come as GOP strategists have predicted that average voters will begin paying attention and throwing their support behind GOP candidates with the election nearing.
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The Senate contests in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Wisconsin and Nevada are still considered “Lean Democratic” by a top non-partisan political handicapper, the Cook Political Report.
The handicapper rated Michigan’s race as a “Toss Up” with the best chance of going Republican come election day.
The tied Senate match-up in Pennsylvania is particularly significant as strategists believe incumbent Casey will be tethered to Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris with the strongest intensity, meaning her performance in the battleground will weigh heavily to pull him up or drag him down.
In the latest CNN poll, former President Donald Trump and Harris were also tied at 47% each.
The poll surveyed 4,398 registered voters in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin and queried them both online by telephone between August 23 and August 29. The margins of error were +/- 4.7% in Pennsylvania and Arizona, +/- 4.9% in Michigan and Nevada, and +/- 4.4% in Wisconsin.
