RNC Chair Warns Republicans Have Voter Turnout Problem
Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters said Sunday that his party faces a voter turnout problem two days before the midterm elections, as public polling and forecast models show Democrats favored to win control of both chambers of Congress.
Voters in North Carolina (Photo by Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)
Gruters made the remarks on NewsNation's The Hill Sunday after host Chris Stirewalt asked him point blank.
"Yes, but Democrats tend to turn out early," Gruters said. "We tend to vote on Election Day. We expect large turnouts across this country. We know our base is motivated."
The RNC chair echoed a warning Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) issued to GOP voters days earlier. "If our voters turn out, we win," Gruters said. "That's what Sen. Cruz is trying to communicate. You can't sit back and think that we're going to win if you don't show up to the polls."
On Friday's episode of his podcast, The Verdict with Ted Cruz, the Texas senator said "massive Democratic turnout" could produce a "bloodbath" for Republicans. "Democrats are showing up, they're energized, they hate, hate, hate Donald Trump," Cruz said. He added, "If the election were over today, if just the early votes that have been cast so far are counted, Republicans would lose massively."
An Emerson College Polling survey and a CNN/SSRS poll each show Democrats leading Republicans by 10 points. Decision Desk HQ, the polling partner of The Hill, gives Democrats an 83% chance of winning the House and a 62% chance of winning the Senate.
Gruters pointed to the president's campaign schedule as the party's response. "That's why the president's out there every single day being an absolute machine," he said. "We have to win this race, and in order to do that, we need our voters to turn out on Tuesday."
Trump has held rallies for GOP candidates across the country, and the RNC announced Thursday that he would hold tele-rallies for 19 states. "Voters across the country want to hear from President Trump before Election Day, and this 72-hour sprint will be a huge boost in the closing days," Gruters explained.
Pollster Frank Luntz made a similar case last month, saying the election hinges on whether the president's voters show up.
In an interview on NewsNation, host Leland Vittert asked Luntz whether polls capture the Republican vote. Vittert cited ColdSpark interviews across five Pennsylvania Senate districts in which Democrats who had voted in each of the last four elections turned out at 129% over quota, compared with 2% over quota for Republicans with the same voting record.
"It says that the Democrats are participating, are prepared to participate, and that the Republicans, low-propensity voters, except in the presidential race, are still less likely to participate," Luntz said of the data.
The pollster described the president's presence on the trail as a factor that works in both directions. "Donald Trump is magic to his voters. When he speaks, they listen, and they don't hear anyone else," Luntz said. "Here's the problem. He's also magic to people who don't like him, who are more likely to participate because they're thinking of him."
Luntz also cautioned against forecasts of a Democratic wave. "Be very careful about this. I think a lot of pollsters are gonna look awfully stupid on Election Day because they're so out there with their projections," he said. When Vittert asked if he meant pollsters forecasting a blue wave, Luntz agreed, while acknowledging that Democrats hold an edge in both chambers.
He pointed to the closing stretch of the 2024 campaign as evidence of a Republican opening. "But I'm telling you, Leland, there is a significant chance that the Republicans can recapture that vote because in the end, in 2024, in the last, let's say, 10 days, Republicans won Latino votes that they had never won before," Luntz said. "They won union votes that they'd never won before. And they won younger males under age 30 like they'd never done before."
Luntz also appeared on CNN and cautioned against predictions of a blue wave.
"We know that they don't respond to phone calls," Luntz told CNN's Boris Sanchez. "We know that in the exit polling back in 2016, and I say this publicly because I want people to hear this. You know, I teach at West Point. I cannot lie, cheat, or steal. The cadets can't. I can't. I got 2016 wrong. I believed in the exit polls. Trump voters walked away, refused to participate because they thought that it was against them."
Luntz conceded the polls could be right, but he didn't sound convinced, and he believes pollsters haven't accurately measured turnout.
"And turnout determines everything," Luntz said. "And I ask the viewers, pay attention to how they've asked the questions about turnout. It's not whether you say you're going to vote or not, because people lie."
Luntz's point about turnout lines up with the case Gruters made on Sunday, when he said Republicans win if their voters show up. With Trump's tele-rallies set to run through Election Day, the RNC chair said the party needs its base at the polls Tuesday.
Tyler Durden Mon, 11/02/2026 - 18:50
Continue reading...
[ H/T ZeroHedge ]
Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters said Sunday that his party faces a voter turnout problem two days before the midterm elections, as public polling and forecast models show Democrats favored to win control of both chambers of Congress.
Voters in North Carolina (Photo by Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)
Gruters made the remarks on NewsNation's The Hill Sunday after host Chris Stirewalt asked him point blank.
"Yes, but Democrats tend to turn out early," Gruters said. "We tend to vote on Election Day. We expect large turnouts across this country. We know our base is motivated."
The RNC chair echoed a warning Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) issued to GOP voters days earlier. "If our voters turn out, we win," Gruters said. "That's what Sen. Cruz is trying to communicate. You can't sit back and think that we're going to win if you don't show up to the polls."
On Friday's episode of his podcast, The Verdict with Ted Cruz, the Texas senator said "massive Democratic turnout" could produce a "bloodbath" for Republicans. "Democrats are showing up, they're energized, they hate, hate, hate Donald Trump," Cruz said. He added, "If the election were over today, if just the early votes that have been cast so far are counted, Republicans would lose massively."
An Emerson College Polling survey and a CNN/SSRS poll each show Democrats leading Republicans by 10 points. Decision Desk HQ, the polling partner of The Hill, gives Democrats an 83% chance of winning the House and a 62% chance of winning the Senate.
Gruters pointed to the president's campaign schedule as the party's response. "That's why the president's out there every single day being an absolute machine," he said. "We have to win this race, and in order to do that, we need our voters to turn out on Tuesday."
Trump has held rallies for GOP candidates across the country, and the RNC announced Thursday that he would hold tele-rallies for 19 states. "Voters across the country want to hear from President Trump before Election Day, and this 72-hour sprint will be a huge boost in the closing days," Gruters explained.
Pollster Frank Luntz made a similar case last month, saying the election hinges on whether the president's voters show up.
In an interview on NewsNation, host Leland Vittert asked Luntz whether polls capture the Republican vote. Vittert cited ColdSpark interviews across five Pennsylvania Senate districts in which Democrats who had voted in each of the last four elections turned out at 129% over quota, compared with 2% over quota for Republicans with the same voting record.
"It says that the Democrats are participating, are prepared to participate, and that the Republicans, low-propensity voters, except in the presidential race, are still less likely to participate," Luntz said of the data.
The pollster described the president's presence on the trail as a factor that works in both directions. "Donald Trump is magic to his voters. When he speaks, they listen, and they don't hear anyone else," Luntz said. "Here's the problem. He's also magic to people who don't like him, who are more likely to participate because they're thinking of him."
Luntz also cautioned against forecasts of a Democratic wave. "Be very careful about this. I think a lot of pollsters are gonna look awfully stupid on Election Day because they're so out there with their projections," he said. When Vittert asked if he meant pollsters forecasting a blue wave, Luntz agreed, while acknowledging that Democrats hold an edge in both chambers.
He pointed to the closing stretch of the 2024 campaign as evidence of a Republican opening. "But I'm telling you, Leland, there is a significant chance that the Republicans can recapture that vote because in the end, in 2024, in the last, let's say, 10 days, Republicans won Latino votes that they had never won before," Luntz said. "They won union votes that they'd never won before. And they won younger males under age 30 like they'd never done before."
Luntz also appeared on CNN and cautioned against predictions of a blue wave.
"We know that they don't respond to phone calls," Luntz told CNN's Boris Sanchez. "We know that in the exit polling back in 2016, and I say this publicly because I want people to hear this. You know, I teach at West Point. I cannot lie, cheat, or steal. The cadets can't. I can't. I got 2016 wrong. I believed in the exit polls. Trump voters walked away, refused to participate because they thought that it was against them."
Luntz conceded the polls could be right, but he didn't sound convinced, and he believes pollsters haven't accurately measured turnout.
"And turnout determines everything," Luntz said. "And I ask the viewers, pay attention to how they've asked the questions about turnout. It's not whether you say you're going to vote or not, because people lie."
Frank Luntz *DUMPS COLD WATER* on CNN viewers' dreams of blue wave
Luntz warned Trump voters "don't respond" to pollster phone calls.
He admitted he "got 2016 wrong" because he trusted the exit polls.
Luntz asserted he is "skeptical" the current polling is accurate.... pic.twitter.com/uDYItXrxrw
— Jason Cohen(@JasonJournoDC) October 18, 2026
Luntz's point about turnout lines up with the case Gruters made on Sunday, when he said Republicans win if their voters show up. With Trump's tele-rallies set to run through Election Day, the RNC chair said the party needs its base at the polls Tuesday.
Tyler Durden Mon, 11/02/2026 - 18:50
Continue reading...
[ H/T ZeroHedge ]
