New poll: 4 in 10 Dems support Sen. Grassley’s re-election
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, enjoys widespread support for his re-election, from Republicans and Democrats. A Quinnipiac University poll released on Monday shows Grassley has a 68 percent approval rating, and voters favor his re-election by a 54-33 percent.
“Iowans seem to like their political leaders, with U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley looking like a strong reelection bet and U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst off to a good start,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the poll, in a statement. “Even four in 10 Democrats think Grassley deserves another term.”
Ernst received a 52-32 approval rating, while 48 percent of voters approved of Republican Gov. Terry Branstad.
The numbers appear to bode well for Republican presidential candidates who are looking to take back the state in a presidential election year. Iowa has gone for the Republican presidential nominee just once in the last seven elections when it picked President George W. Bush in 2004.
Quinnipiac’s most recent survey of Iowans’ thoughts on the presidential race showed Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker leading Donald Trump in June. Since that time, the gap between the two men appears to have narrowed in Iowa. But statewide polling has yet to determine whether Trump’s controversial remarks in front of an Iowan crowd about Sen. John McCain’s military service and Trump’s faith hurt him in the Hawkeye State, as recently released surveys included polling of Iowa from before he made the comments.
The new Quinnipiac poll shows a mixed bag for the GOP in other battleground states. In Colorado, Republican Sen. Cory Gardner, enjoys a 48-28 percentage point approval rating little less than one full year since his election. Senior Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., has a 41-31 approval rating, but voters indicated 40-32 percent that he does not deserve to be re-elected. Several declared GOP candidates are vying to replace him, and a few more may still jump into the race.
In Virginia, things look more unpleasant for the Republican Party. Virginia’s top three statewide officials, all Democrats, each received an approval rating of 50 percentage points or greater. Sen. Mark Warner, who narrowly defeated Republican challenger Ed Gillespie less than one year ago, now enjoys a 59-26 percent approval rating. While the electorate resoundingly favored statewide Democrats, it was split nearly even on whether to remove the Confederate flag from Virginia license plates.
While last year’s midterm elections remain closer in time than next year’s presidential election, early polling shows good news for Republicans in Iowa and Colorado, while Democrats are having success in Virginia.
Contributed by Ryan Lovelace- Washington Examiner
