Republicans 'Won' the Midterm Elections, Nearly Half of GOP Respondents Say in Poll

By Tim Marcin On 11/14/18 at 4:35 PM EST

Most political observers would call the 2018 midterm elections a victory for the Democrats. But most Republicans would disagree.

A poll from YouGov/The Economist, released Wednesday, asked: "From what you know now, which party did better, or 'won,' the midterm elections?" Respondents were able to choose among the Republican Party, the Democratic Party, "about the same" and "not sure."

A plurality of Republican respondents—46 percent—said the GOP won the 2018 midterms. Just 18 percent said Democrats won. Twenty-nine percent said "about the same" and 6 percent were not sure.

Among Democrats, the numbers were predictably different. Seventy percent of Democratic respondents said they thought their party won while just 5 percent said the GOP won. Sixteen percent of Democratic respondents said the results were "about the same" for both parties and 9 percent were not sure.

Among all respondents, 40 percent said the Democratic Party won, 18 percent said the Republican Party, 27 percent said "about the same" and 16 percent were not sure.

midterm elections 2018, republicans democrats won — President Donald Trump gives a thumbs up at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on June 8, 2018. Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

The poll from YouGov/The Economist surveyed 1,500 U.S. adults from November 11 through November 13. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

The Democrats flipped the House of Representatives in the 2018 midterms and have continued to expand on their majority as results have trickled in since Election Day. The Party also avoided major losses in the Senate despite a tough electoral map. President Donald Trump and White House officials, however, have touted the midterms as a big win for the GOP—despite reports that in private Trump is enraged.

Despite what Trump may say, Democrats have picked up the most House seats since the post-Watergate election of 1974. And lots of experts have pointed out the so-called blue wave ended up happening. "A week later it's clear the midterms did produce a blue wave," read the headline, in part, of a piece from CNBC's political reporter John Harwood. NPR—predicting that when it's all said and done the Democrats could gain a net of 39 seats in the House—called it the election a "very big wave."

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