A trio of Republican senators up for re-election have taken control of their contests and lead handily, while a fourth has taken a slight lead as the GOP looks to hold onto their Senate majority, according to a new poll released Friday.
Ohio’s Rob Portman, Florida’s Marco Rubio and North Carolina’s Richard Burr all lead by at least 6 points, according to the latest Quinnipiac poll.
At the moment, Portman leads former Gov. Ted Strickland by an 11-point margin (51-40 percent), while Rubio leads Rep. Patrick Murphy by 7 points (50-43). Meanwhile, Burr holds a 6-point lead over Deborah Ross in a race that has become competitive over the past few months.
On the other side, Pennsylvania’s Pat Toomey continues to be locked in a neck-and-neck contest against Katie McGinty, a former chief of staff to Gov. Tom Wolf, leading her by a single point (46-45). Toomey, along with New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte, likely hold the keys to the GOP retaining the Senate majority.
Toomey’s slim lead is noteworthy considering he was down by 3 points (47-44) to McGinty in Quinnipiac’s August poll. Donald Trump has cut into Hillary Clinton’s lead in the state over the last month. Last month, Trump was down by 10 points (52-42) to the former secretary, but has turned it around in September as Clinton leads by only 5 points (48-43).
All four of the GOP incumbents hold significant leads among independent voters in the states, all of which are considered toss-up states this year. They are also running well ahead of Trump, who is leading in only Ohio and trailing in Pennsylvania and North Carolina. He is tied with Clinton in Florida.
“The U.S. Senate races in Florida, North Carolina, Ohio and perhaps Pennsylvania show Democrats face an uphill climb,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac Poll. “All four GOP candidates are running ahead of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, some by just a bit, but some substantially.”
