CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten said President Joe Biden remaining in the race is hurting Democrats’ chances of securing majorities in the House and Senate.
Enten presented polls conducted by three separate organizations finding Republicans are in the lead in the U.S. House. A CNN/SSRS poll shows Republicans are up by two points, while the Wall Street Journal and Monmouth University polls both place Republicans up by three points.
“Yeah, Joe Biden might be in slightly worse shape in these particular polls. But the fact is when Biden is down four, five, six points in these polls. You can only run so far ahead of Joe Biden. At this particular point, at least in the race for the House, it does seem like Republicans are ahead because Donald Trump is so far ahead,” Enten said.
CNN’s Harry Enten says Biden is hurting Democrats’ chances in the House and Senate pic.twitter.com/V5AftDrXtq
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) July 9, 2024
Enten further noted Republicans’ path to victory in the Senate is “extremely clear” as they only need to gain one seat if Trump wins. The party’s “best chance” of pickup is in West Virginia, where there is currently “a very likely GOP win,” while Democrats’ “best pickup chance” is in Texas where there still remains “a likely GOP win.” (RELATED: Democrat Consultant Paul Begala Sounds Alarm On Biden’s Reelection Chances As Democrats Grow More Divided)
“So the fact is, if Donald Trump wins this election, the race for the Senate for all intents and purposes in my mind, is over,” Enten continued.
Recent history shows that same ticket voting is consistent in presidential elections, indicating that if Trump wins the presidency, his party will also win the Senate, Enten added. He said Democrats will not be able to gain control if Biden’s numbers remain as they currently are, citing past data.
Trump has nearly doubled his lead over Biden since the June 27 debate, with polls from the New York Times/Sienna College and the Wall Street Journal finding Trump rose from a 1.5-point to 3.2-point lead average against Biden. A FiveThirtyEight survey found Trump leading Biden nationally by 42% to 39.8% as of Monday, an increase from the 41.1% to 40.9% lead on the day of the debate.
