Sherrod Brown gets good news after suffering a double poll setback in Ohio

Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown received a boost in his re-election hopes after a new poll showed him leading his Republican opponent Bernie Moreno, just days after two consecutive polls showed him trailing.

Moreno and Brown are in a tight race for a hotly contested U.S. Senate seat, with most polls showing the candidates' lead within the margin of error.

A New York Times/A Siena College poll of 687 likely voters in Ohio showed the three-term senator leading Moreno by 4 percentage points in the closely contested Buckeye State, within the poll's margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. The poll, conducted September 17-21, showed Brown receiving 47 percent of the vote, compared to 43 percent for Moreno.

Survey aggregator FiveThirtyEight ranks New York Times/Siena College was named America's top pollster for its historic track record and methodological transparency.

The poll shows Brown has the support of 10 percent of voters who backed former President Donald Trump in 2020, and 13 percent of his supporters identify as Republicans. On the other hand, Moreno, whom Trump endorsed ahead of the state's GOP primary in March, reportedly attracts just 1 percent of voters who identify as Democrats.

Newsweek emailed Brown and Moreno's campaign teams for comment on Saturday.

With just 37 days until Election Day, which will determine the presidential seat and control of Congress, the majority in the Senate is razor-thin. The upper chamber is currently controlled by Democrats, who hold a slim 51-seat majority due to four independents joining the party, while Republicans hold 49 seats.

The Cook Political Report currently rates the Ohio Senate race as a “draw.” In the presidential election, the state is expected to vote for Trump and his running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance. Statewide polls like FiveThirtyEight show Trump with an 8.6 percentage point lead over Vice President Kamala Harris in Ohio. Trump carried the state in both 2016 and 2020.

The recently published Just/The Siena College poll comes after two polls showed Moreno in the state. However, during the summer months, most polls showed Brown ahead of Moreno.

An ActiVote poll conducted from August 16 to September 22 showed Democrats down 2.2 percentage points, with Moreno receiving 51.1 percent support compared to Brown's 48.9 percent. The poll polled 400 likely Ohio voters and had a margin of error of 4.9 percent, meaning Moreno's narrow lead is well within the poll's margin of error.

A Napolitan News poll of 781 likely voters conducted between September 18 and 20 showed Moreno leading Brown 48 percent to 46 percent, another lead that was within the poll's margin of error of 3.5 percentage points lies.

Other previous polls showed Brown ahead in the contested race. Morning Consult polls conducted between September 9 and 18 showed Brown two points ahead of Moreno. The Democrat had the support of 46 percent of likely Ohio voters and the Republican had the support of 44 percent. The poll included at least 474 likely voters and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Last week, Moreno faced criticism from political opponents and members of his own party after he called it “a little crazy” that some voters in the state are naming abortion as their top issue in the 2024 election.

“You know, the left has a lot of individual voters,” Moreno said during a town hall meeting Friday, according to a video obtained by NBC4. “Sadly, by the way, there are a lot of suburban women, a lot of suburban women who say, 'Listen, abortion is the right thing to do. If I can't get an abortion at any time in this country, I will vote for anyone.' different.'”

Abortion is a top issue in the November election as it comes two years after the Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade and ended a woman's federal right to an abortion.

On Monday, Brown shared a video clip of Moreno's town hall comments on “,” he wrote.

Moreno also received backlash from members of his party, such as former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who posted Moreno's comments on X and wrote, “Are you trying to lose the election?” Ask for a friend.”

Conservative political commentator Bill Kristol wrote on X: “I don’t know. Maybe women over 50 take care of their daughters? Or younger women in general? Or about personal freedom?”