August 16, 2006

Abstract: - More Americans are voicing support for the Democratic Party, according to a poll by Opinion Dynamics released by Fox News. 48 per cent of respondents would back the Democratic candidate in their congressional district, while 30 per cent would vote for the Republican contender.

- More Americans are voicing support for the Democratic Party, according to a poll by Opinion Dynamics released by Fox News. 48 per cent of respondents would back the Democratic candidate in their congressional district, while 30 per cent would vote for the Republican contender.

Support for the Democrats increased by six points since July, while backing for the Republicans fell by four points. American voters will renew the House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate on Nov. 7.

In the November 2004 congressional ballot, the Republican Party elected 232 lawmakers to the United States House of Representatives, while the Democratic Party secured 202 seats. The Republicans also have a majority in the Senate, with 55 members in the 100-seat upper house.

On Aug. 13, Republican National Committee (RNC) chairman Ken Mehlman said the war in Iraq would become a key issue, adding, "The choice in this election is not between stay the course and cut and run. It's between win by adapting and cut and run. (...) I acknowledge that when you're facing any war, the enemy is smart, the enemy thinks, and particularly in this kind of war it requires you to adapt to win."

Polling Data

Thinking ahead to this November's elections, if the congressional election were held today, would you vote for the Democratic candidate in your district or the Republican candidate in your district?

	Aug. 2006	Jul. 2006	Jun. 2006
Democrat	48%	42%	46%
Republican	30%	34%	33%
Other / Not sure	22%	25%	20%

Source: Opinion Dynamics / Fox News
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 900 registered American voters, conducted on Aug. 8 and Aug. 9, 2006. Margin of error is 3 per cent.