Monmouth poll shows Republicans hold edge in voter preference to lead Congress

Republicans maintain a small but solid edge in voter preference to lead Congress, according to a major U.S. polling outfit, with the U.S. midterms increasingly set to play out as a razor-thin contest between the two principle American political parties. 

Monmouth University's latest national poll shows that "Republicans continue to hold a slight edge in preference for congressional control," with voters arguing that "President Joe Biden has not been paying attention to their most important concerns as inflation continues to be the top issue in this cycle."

"Currently, 40% of Americans say they want the GOP in charge and another 9% have no initial preference but lean toward Republican control," Monmouth said in the poll results. "Democratic control is preferred by 35% with another 10% leaning toward the Democrats."

The outfit noted that the Republican advantage has increased slightly since September. "Last month, 47% preferred or leaned toward the GOP and 44% favored the Democrats," Monmouth said. 

“Simply put, America remains divided, but the fundamentals and issue environment gives a small but consequential edge to Republicans,” Monomuth University Poling Institute Director Patrick Murray said in the release. 

The polling institute said that, according to survey results, 37% of Americas are "struggling to remain where they are financially."