GOP Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall trails Democratic challenger Adam Hamilton by as much as 9 percentage points in the latest polls, an ominous signal for Republicans to keep control of the narrowly divided Senate.
Hamilton, the senior pastor at the country's largest Methodist parish, led Marshall by 52% to 43% in a Washington Post-Schar School poll. The poll of 801 likely Kansas voters was conducted Oct. 22 to 26 and had a margin of error of 3.9 points.
The final Emerson College Polling survey of Kansas voters found 49% support for Hamilton and 45% support for Marshall. The poll of 800 likely voters conducted Oct. 26 to 28 had a margin of error of 3.5 points.
The poll results are striking for a state that hasn’t elected a Democratic senator since
1932.
On Oct. 29, President Donald Trump canceled planned weekend rallies in Kansas and Iowa – although a day later those rallies were announced to be back on. Trump and Marshall each previously told reporters the incumbent was doing well enough that the president didn’t need to visit in person.
"You know what the reason is? I don't feel like I have to go to Kansas," said Trump, who had an approval rating of 45% in Kansas and a disapproval rating of 51% in the Emerson poll.
Trump held a morning radio interview with KCMO in Kansas City on Oct. 30 to support Marshall.
The Kansas seat is important because Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate. A Hamilton win could help Democrats gain control of the chamber, where they could hinder the president’s legislative agenda and block his judicial nominations.
Trump previously rallied in Park City, Kansas, with Marshall on Oct. 19. Trump has dismissed discouraging polls by saying the only one that counts is on Election Day.
Marshall, an obstetrician-gynecologist, has been criticized after The New York Times reported he sued 700 patients for medical debt, which resulted in 81 arrests. Marshall and his lawyers disputed specific anecdotes in the story and said collecting medical debts is a common business practice for doctors.
Trump has been barnstorming states led by Republicans for a month to preserve GOP majorities in Congress. The RNC said Trump will hold tele-rallies in 19 states that will allow him to "reach more voters in the limited time left before polls close."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kansas Senate polls show Democrat leading by up to 9 points
