According to a new Gallup poll released Wednesday, Democrats hold the biggest advantage over Republicans in party identification in nearly nine years.
The survey found that 49 percent of adult respondents say they identify themselves as democrats or independents of democracy, while 40 percent identify as Republicans or GOP independents. The 9-point mark is the largest for Democrats since the fourth quarter of 2012. Democratic benefits since that time have typically hovered between 4 and 6 points.
Of the 49 percent of voters who identified more closely with Democrats, 30 percent said they were Democrats and 19 percent that they were independents who were more inclined toward the party. Twenty-five percent of respondents said they were Republicans, while 15 percent were independents who were more inclined toward the IDP.
The vast majority of the remaining 11 percent of respondents identified as independent without a biased tendency.
The poll was taken during the first quarter of 2021, overlapping with the deadly uprising on Capitol Hill on January 6, President Biden
Joe Biden attacks Iranian spy-linked ship at sea Biden exceeds expectations of vaccines – so far Jill Biden Alabama joins actress Jennifer Garner MOREinauguration on January 20 and the implementation of a comprehensive $ 1.9 billion coronavirus relief package.
Democrats’ identification advantage is the highest the party has held since early 2009, the last time they had a double-digit lead during the languishing days of the George W. Bush administration.
Republicans had brief advantages during successful mid-term cycles in 1994, 2010 and 2014.
The poll comes as both parties prepare for a controversial mid-term cycle in which control of the House and Senate is ready. Democrats control the lower chamber with a margin of five seats and hold a narrow 50-50 majority in the upper chamber. Republicans were able to make a profit in the mid-2014 period, despite shortages in voter identification in 2012 and 2013.
The Gallup poll surveyed 3960 adults from January to March and has a margin of error of 2 percentage points.