Midterm elections: Democrats rise in polls amid Brett Kavanaugh scandal

Democrats see a rise in support just two months ahead of the midterm elections

The Democratic Party has seen an uptick in support ahead of the 2018 midterm elections, as Republicans on Capitol Hill scramble to resolve their latest controversies.

Democrats hold an eight-point lead over Republicans nationwide on the generic ballot , according to a new American Barometer survey conducted by Hill.TV and HarrisX polling company.

While 36 per cent of the respondents said they will vote for a Republican candidate in their local districts, 44 per cent have said they will support the Democrat — a three point jump from earlier in the month when the Democratic Party’s lead was reduced to just five points.

The poll may reflect voter frustration with several fresh scandals stemming from the White House.

In recent weeks, Republicans have sought to push through a rapid confirmation process for Donald Trump’s embattled Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, who has been accused by at least three women of sexual misconduct.

Meanwhile, the same day Mr Kavanaugh and Dr Christine Blasey Ford — the first accuser to step forward with accusations against the nominee — are set to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Rod Rosenstein will have his fate determined as well.

The president’s attorney general may soon be ousted after an explosive report alleged he discussed wearing a wire to secretly record Mr Trump, as well as recruiting Cabinet members to invoke the 25th Amendment.

Mr Kavanaugh and Mr Rosenstein have both vehemently denied the different accusations against them, yet each controversy continues to dominate the national news cycle.

Of course, polls are not fool-proof methods of determining voter attitudes, and Democrats previously enjoyed upwards of a 10-point lead against their Congressional counterparts.

Still, analysts believe it’s safe to say the Democratic Party has maintained a significant advantage in the elections that are just two months away.

“Whatever party that is out of power tends to be a little more excited in the summer, and that, after we get past Labour Day, it just evens out regardless of which side it was to start with,“ Patrick Murphy, poll director at Monmouth University, told Hill.TV. “The overall numbers still favour the Democrats.”

Meanwhile, the president has aggressively campaigned for Republicans across the country, stumping for conservatives who align themselves with his “America First” agenda while attacking their opponents for being “weak on crime and immigration”.

He’s also told his supporters at a rally earlier this month that if Democrats take back the House in November and he is impeached, it would be his voters’ fault, “because you didn’t vote”.

The survey was conducted between Friday and Saturday, with 1,000 respondents and a sampling margin of error of 3.1 per cent.