Democrats hold the advantage in nearly all seven battleground states expected to determine control of the U.S. Senate, according to the final New York Times/Siena University polls before the midterm elections.
- The biggest shifts occurred in Maine and Michigan, where Democratic candidates expanded their leads considerably.
Maine: Democrat Troy Jackson now leads Republican incumbent Susan Collins by 6 percentage points, a nine-point swing from September, when Collins held a three-point advantage.
Michigan: Democrat Abdul El-Sayed has expanded his lead to 11 points, more than doubling his five-point advantage in September.
A bright spot for Republicans: Alaska has become considerably more competitive. The Democratic lead narrowed from seven points in September to just one point in the latest survey.
The bottom line: The latest polling shows Democrats gaining ground in two closely watched Senate contests, while Republicans have narrowed the gap in Alaska. However, the races remain undecided, and polling leads do not guarantee election victories.