Signaling that Democrats may be hurtling toward a crushing defeat on Nov. 4, a new poll shows voters angry about the way things are going, with 74 percent dissatisfied with the way the country is being governed and 53 percent unhappy with President Barack Obama's job performance.
According to the
CNN/ORC International Poll, 30 percent of Americans are "very angry" and 38 percent "somewhat angry" about where the United States is headed, with 31 percent feeling "no anger."
But it's that segment of very angry voters that should be concerning for Democrats ahead of next week's vote: polling director Keating Holland notes that the anger level matches America's mood in 2010, when Republicans took over the House of Representatives,
CNN reports.
Holland said 36 percent of Republicans say they're "extremely" or "very" enthusiastic about voting this year, though only 26 percent of Democrats use those words to describe their enthusiasm level.
"That 10-point difference is certain to affect turnout and hurt Democrats' chances in marginal districts," Holland said about House races on the ballot.
CNN notes the president's job rating gets its best support in the Northeast, at 51 percent, and in urban areas, 60 percent.
But all but one of the races that will decide which party controls the Senate in 2015 are in geographical areas where Obama's approval rating is in the low 40's, CNN reports.
In Iowa, where Democrats are trying to hold an open Senate seat, Obama has a 56 percent disapproval rating, the survey shows.
In the South, where Democrats are battling for re-election in Arkansas, Louisiana, and North Carolina, and are in a
tight race for an open seat in Georgia, and where the GOP is trying to protect Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in Kentucky, the president has a 52 percent disapproval rating.
In the West, where Democratic incumbents are fighting for re-election in Alaska and Colorado, Obama's disapproval rating is 55 percent, the poll finds.
Those states all have rural areas with sizable populations, CNN reports, and the president's disapproval rating among rural voters is a staggering 70 percent, the poll shows.
With Republicans expected to snatch current Democratic seats in Montana, South Dakota, and West Virginia, the GOP would need only a net gain of
three more seats to take back the Senate majority.