(POLL) Repubs maintain 5 point lead in 'Generic Congressional Ballot'

The Midterm elections are now just a little over two months away and Republicans are still holding a five-point lead, in their bid to recapture control of Congress.

That's according to Rasmussen Reports.

The survey finds that if the elections for Congress were held today, 47% of likely U.S. voters said they would vote for the Republican candidate, while 42% said they would vote for the Democrat.

Just four percent (4%) said they would vote for some other candidate, and another eight percent (8%) are unsure.

The GOP lead is unchanged from last week, when the party led 46%-41%. 

Republicans have led the Generic Congressional Ballot all year, although their lead has narrowed since mid-July.

The Republican lead is mainly due to the 10-point advantage they have among independent voters.

Eighty-six percent (86%) of Republican voters say they would vote for their own party’s congressional candidate, while 80% of Democrats would vote for the Democratic candidate.

Among voters not affiliated with either major party, 42% said they would vote Republican and 32% said they would vote Democrat, while 9% said they would vote for some other candidate, and 17% are undecided.

The latest findings showed the so-called “gender gap” widening this week, with men (52%) now 10 points more likely than women voters (42%) to prefer Republican candidates. The gap was eight points last week.

Rasmussen Reports is updating its Generic Congressional Ballot findings weekly on Fridays at 10:30 a.m. Eastern until the midterm elections in November.

To see survey question wording, click here.