Incumbent Rep. Jason Lewis (R-MN-02) pulled off a surprising upset in the 2016 election, but polls are showing that he’s facing another tough challenge in his rematch with Angie Craig.
According to the latest New York Times and Sienna College poll, Craig leads Lewis 51 percent to 39 percent among likely Minnesota voters, with 9 percent of respondents still undecided. Craig, who lost to Lewis in 2016, is also significantly outraising her opponent by $311,414.
Both the Cook Political Report and FiveThirtyEight have the district “leaning Dem” in the midterms, though President Donald Trump did win Minnesota’s Second Congressional District over Hillary Clinton, which Lewis has been attempting to use to his advantage on the campaign trail.
The president himself will be campaigning for Lewis and other Republicans at a Thursday rally in Rochester, Minn.
“This is the president’s second visit to Minnesota since June,” Minnesota GOP Chairwoman Jennifer Carnahan said in a press release. “The importance of Minnesota towards protecting the House and Senate this election cycle is evident, and we appreciate the president’s support for our candidates and all Minnesotans.”
It’s unclear, though, if the Trump factor will work to Lewis’ advantage, since 55 percent of respondents told The New York Times that they “disapprove” of Trump’s job performance, while an additional 58 percent would prefer a candidate who serves “as a check” on the president.
Additionally, 51 percent of likely voters would like to see Democrats “take control” of the House, compared to 41 percent who want Republicans to “retain control.”
Internal polling from the Lewis campaign paints a slightly different picture, with the Republican incumbent ahead of Craig by three points, a two-point increase from the campaign’s August poll.
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Anthony Gockowski is managing editor of The Minnesota Sun. Follow Anthony on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
