Democrats leading in Michigan, New Hampshire Senate races: Survey

Democrats are maintaining their leads in the U.S. Senate races in Michigan and New Hampshire, according to New York Times/Siena polling released Thursday.

In the Michigan race, Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed garnered 49 percent support compared with the 44 percent of respondents who favored Republican Mike Rogers. The Democrat has maintained a slight lead over his GOP opponent in polling this month.

In New Hampshire, Democrat Chris Pappas also posted a 5-point advantage in the state’s Senate race, receiving 50 percent support compared with the 45 percent backing earned by Republican candidate John Sununu.

Both New Hampshire candidates received net-negative favorability ratings of minus 1 point from voters. Independent voters, a key voting bloc in the state, leaned toward supporting Pappas by 10 points.

Republican Sen. Susan Collins pulled ahead in a separate survey conducted on Maine’s Senate race, garnering a 3-point advantage over Democratic challenger Troy Jackson.

Jackson had a narrow lead on the incumbent senator in polling from CNN and YouGov earlier this month, but this new survey could raise GOP hopes for maintaining control of the vulnerable Senate seat.

Voters surveyed in all three states also indicated dissatisfaction with President Trump, with 63 percent expressing disapproval of how he has handled his job as president.

The president’s approval ratings, particularly regarding his management of the economy, have taken a hit in polling since the outbreak of the Iran war earlier this year. When asked specifically about how Trump has handled economic issues as president, 65 percent of survey respondents said they either strongly or somewhat disapproved of his approach to the issue.

A large share, or 40 percent, of the respondents identified as independent voters. Of these voters, 50 percent said they leaned more toward the Democratic Party and 39 percent said they leaned toward the Republican Party.

The New York Times/Siena polls were conducted from Sept. 15 to 22 among 619 Maine voters, 605 Michigan voters and 613 New Hampshire voters. The margin of error was approximately 4.9 percentage points in each state and 2.8 percentage points for the collective results.