Democrats see bright spot in economy ahead of midterms

Voters are starting to trust Democrats more on the economy, offering a potential opening for the party to regain ground on kitchen-table issues ahead of November’s midterms.

For the first time since 2010, Americans say they trust Democrats more than Republicans — 52 percent to 48 percent — to handle the economy, according to the latest Fox News poll. 

The last time Democrats held the upper hand was in May 2010, when 44 percent said they trusted Democrats and 41 percent favored Republicans, ending an 8-year stretch in which voters preferred Democrats on the issue.

Democrats and strategists say the shift in polling comes after months of disciplined messaging on cost-of-living issues and against an economic backdrop that they hope could open a path to retaking the majority in both chambers come November.

Geoffrey Skelley, chief elections analyst at Decision Desk HQ, said the latest polling is “telling,” noting it corresponds with a decline in consumer sentiment and President Trump’s falling approval rating on his handling of the economy.

“President Trump was elected in part because people thought he was a good steward of the economy when he was president the first time,” Skelley told The Hill.

“The fact that now he is scoring so poorly, and you have a finding like this — where the Republican advantage on the issue of the economy has shrunk to potentially nothing, at least in the Fox News data — is, I think, problematic for making an argument for why people shouldn’t be considering change” by backing Democrats, he added. 

Republicans hold the majority in the Senate, with 53 seats to Democrats’ 47 seats. Democrats would need to keep those seats and flip four GOP seats in November to win control of the upper chamber.

Skelley said he is skeptical Democrats can overcome the unfavorable map but added that, “if trends continue somewhat like they are, or things get worse for the GOP, then certainly........

© The Hill