A PBS News/NPR/Marist poll released Wednesday found that 53% of registered voters would prefer Democratic candidates for Congress if the election were held today, compared with 41% who prefer Republicans—a 12-point Democratic advantage in the generic ballot, according to PBS NewsHour (opens in new tab) and Georgia Public Broadcasting coverage of the same survey.
President Donald Trump’s job rating in the poll stood at 39% approve and 59% disapprove. PBS reported that 53% strongly disapprove—the highest strong-disapproval share Marist has recorded across either of Trump’s terms. GPB likewise cited 39% approval, 59% disapproval, and record-high strong disapproval since Marist began asking the question in 2017.
About seven in 10 voters said Trump is a factor in their congressional vote, PBS reported. Overall, 45% of registered voters and 54% of independents said their vote would be mostly to express opposition to Trump; 24% of voters and 12% of independents said they were voting to show support. Independents favored Democrats by 25 points on the generic ballot, per PBS.
On issues, PBS said voters gave Democrats an edge on the economy (42% to 34%), gas prices (13-point margin), and foreign policy (6 points); on immigration, Democrats led by 3 points—inside the margin of error—after Republicans had led by 12 points in February 2024. GPB reported similar issue splits and noted Democrats leading 41%–38% on immigration handling.
Enthusiasm tilted Democratic in the same snapshot: PBS said 76% of Democrats versus 67% of Republicans care a great deal who controls Congress, and 42% of Democrats versus 34% of Republicans follow the election very closely. Methodological note from both outlets: the poll surveyed 1,280 registered voters Sept. 14–15, 2026, by phone, text, and online, with a ±3.8 percentage-point margin of error for the full sample.
PBS quoted Marist Institute director Lee Miringoff describing September margins as a snapshot of voter mood, not a forecast of outcomes, and noting that post-2018 redistricting has narrowed the field of competitive House seats. The Event Record reports the published poll numbers only; it does not treat them as predictions of November results.