MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Republican voters enthusiasm dwindling, says Time

Republicans are less enthusiastic than Democrats about going to vote Tuesday in the United States mid term elections according to a survey from Time magazine Sunday edition.

According to the public opinion poll, 52% of voters that call themselves Democrats feel more enthusiastic about voting than in the past, while only 39% of Republicans share the same feeling.

Those less enthusiastic about voting are 37% of Republicans and 29% of Democrats. This is bad news for Republicans since in the previous elections it was the party that had been most successful in convincing followers to go and vote.

According to the survey the disenchantment is particularly significant in a group that has proved vital for Republicans in other occasions: Christian evangelists.

Only 54% of voters from this group support Republicans while 38% are now saying they will vote Democrat. In the presidential elections of two years ago, 78% of evangelists voted in favor of George W. Bush.

However a majority of US citizens believes that Iraq has become the most crucial issue of these mid term elections, with 35% of interviews considering it "extremely important" and 44% "very important". Both 53% of Republicans and Democrats believe it was a major mistake to get involved in the Iraq war.

Traditionally in mid term elections below 40% of US registered voters go to the polls. Therefore both Republicans and Democrats agree that election results will much depend on who is more successful in motivating voters to effectively go and vote.

Opinion polls show Democrats leading and needing to win 15 seats in the House of Representatives if they are to take control of the House. In the Senate out of 100 seats, Democrats must take away six seats from Republicans, which is rather more complicated since only a third of seats are renewed.