Voters' Support for Members of Congress is at an All-Time Low, Poll Finds - Washington Post

Voters' support for members of Congress is at an all-time low, poll finds
By Dan Balz and Jon Cohen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, June 8, 2010

As voters head to the polls Tuesday for a crucial set of primary elections, a new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds antipathy toward their elected officials rising and anti-incumbent sentiment at an all-time high.

The national survey shows that 29 percent of Americans now say they are inclined to support their House representative in November, even lower than in 1994, when voters swept the Democrats out of power in the that chamber after 40 years in the majority.

The poll also finds growing disapproval of the "tea party" movement, with half the population now expressing an unfavorable impression of the loosely aligned protest campaign that has shaken up politics this year.

And at a time when Republicans anticipate significant gains in House and Senate elections, there is also fresh evidence of the challenges facing the GOP. Six in 10 poll respondents say they have a negative view of the policies put forward by the Republican minority in Congress, and about a third say they trust Republicans over Democrats to handle the nation's main problems.

This sour mood has made for nervous politicians, as candidates from both parties have tried to figure out what voters want -- and don't want. On Tuesday, hopefuls in Virginia and 11 other states will find out. It is the busiest single primary day of the year, and a big test of just how deep anti-incumbent and anti-establishment feelings go.

Most attention is focused on Arkansas, where Democratic Sen. Blanche Lincoln is struggling to fend off a challenge from Lt. Gov. Bill Halter in a runoff election. (One interesting thing to note about Tuesday's primaries: The most closely watched races all feature women.) If Lincoln were to lose, she would be the third senator and fourth incumbent to fall this year. Halter has strong support from organized labor. Lincoln has President Obama's backing, but after the May 18 primary, she called in former president Bill Clinton to help her.

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