McConnell Says There's 'Greater Likelihood the House Flips than the Senate'
AllSides Summary
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) predicted that his party may have a tough time winning control of the Senate in the 2022 midterm elections.
At a recent event in Kentucky, McConnell said he thinks "there’s probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate" and that "candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome." He also predicted that "we’re likely to have an extremely close Senate, either our side up slightly or their side up slightly" after the elections.
Historically, the president's party tends to fall short in midterm elections. Currently, Democrats are favored to win the Senate, 64% to 36%, while Republicans are expected to win the House, 77% to 23%, according to FiveThirtyEight (Center bias).
News sources across the political spectrum focused on McConnell's "candidate quality" remark, and tied his concerns to Republican underperformance in the 2010 midterms while President Barack Obama was in office. Right-rated outlets tended to frame his comments as concerning; Fox News called it a "grim prediction," and the Daily Caller (Right bias) said McConnell had "sounded the alarm" on Republicans' Senate chances. On the left, NBC News reported that McConnell "has long worried that subpar candidates could play into Democrats' hands."
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Center
McConnell says House more likely to flip than Senate, cites candidate quality
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Thursday predicted that Republicans have a better chance of flipping the House than the Senate, citing candidate quality, again taming expectations for the upper chamber less than three months out from the midterm elections.
“I think there’s probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate. Senate races are just different — they’re statewide, candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome,” McConnell said when asked about his expectations for the midterms during an event in Kentucky, according to NBC News....
From the Left
McConnell says Republicans may not win Senate control, citing ‘candidate quality’
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Thursday downplayed expectations of Republicans capturing control of the Senate in the fall elections, describing “candidate quality” as an important factor.
“I think there’s probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate. Senate races are just different — they're statewide, candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome,” he said in Florence, Kentucky, at a Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce luncheon when asked about his projection for the 2022 election.
“Right now, we have a 50-50 Senate and a 50-50...
From the Right
McConnell makes grim prediction about Republicans in Senate races, references 'candidate quality'
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-KY, thinks that Republicans have a lukewarm chance of flipping the Senate in November, citing "candidate quality" as a factor.
The senator made the honest prediction at the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce luncheon on Thursday afternoon.
"I think there's probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate," the minority leader anticipated. "Senate races are just different, they're statewide. Candidate quality has a lot to do with the outcome."
"Right now, we have a 50-50 Senate and a 50-50 country, but I think when all is said...
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