Fewer than a fifth of Americans saw this month’s election as giving a mandate to the Republican Party, according to a new CNN/Opinion Research poll. Asked whether the election provided a mandate for Republicans or was a rejection of Democrats, 70 percent said the midterms were a negative reaction to the governing party. Only 17 percent said the election provided the GOP with a mandate.
The results are similar to a CNN/Time poll following the GOP’s win in the 1994 midterm election, when 18 percent said Republicans had a mandate and 60 percent interpreted the election as a rejection of Democrats.
While Republicans aren’t perceived to have a mandate, more Americans believe the GOP will do a better job with control of the House than Democrats did.
Thirty-three percent said Republicans will do better, compared to 21 percent who said they will be worse. Forty-four percent believe a GOP majority will make “no difference.”
Additionally, 52 percent said that Republican control of the House will be “good for the country” and 39 percent believe the GOP majority will be “bad for the country.”
The nationwide poll of 1,014 was conducted November 11-14 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
