‘The Trump Candidates Are Struggling’: Pollster Tells Fox News ‘This Puts Donald Trump in a Very Difficult Position’

Pollster Mark Penn said the results he was seeing on election night indicate Republicans aren’t getting the “red wave” they hoped for in Tuesday’s midterm elections.

“What do you think the message is tonight so far?” asked Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum.

Penn answered that Republicans seemed to be outperforming Democrats, but not dramatically.

“It’s a shift to the Republicans so far, but not a wave,” he replied. “I think the House gets a clear rebuke for overspending, inflation, and the economy. But I also think that in the Senate – particularly the Trump candidates are struggling.”

Penn pointed to the easy reelection victory for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier in the evening.

He called it “an affirmation of DeSantis as a potential Republican presidential candidate,” adding, “I think this puts Donald Trump in a very difficult position.”

As Penn spoke, several Trump-backed Senate candidates were running neck and neck in various House and Senate races across the country. Others had already lost their races, such as Don Bolduc, who was unable to unseat Maggie Hassan in New Hampshire despite Republicans’ hopes.

Meanwhile, Herschel Walker was in a race too close to call with Sen. Raphael Warnock in Georgia. Trump-backed Mehmet Oz was underperforming Trump’s 2020 numbers in his race against Lt. Gov. John Fetterman in Pennsylvania.

“Mark, we talked about closing messages,” Bret Baier said. “In previous interviews, you questioned the Democrats closing with threats to democracy, talking about abortion off of the Roe v. Wade decision overturn. But when you look at these numbers now, do you think that worked?”

“I don’t think it worked,” Penn responded. “It’s not like I think the Democrats are gonna come out with seats. Look, I always think messages that bring the country together that win swing voters are better messages for the long term. It’s how you ultimately win presidential races. I think Democrats rallied their base. They avoided some really difficult issues. But I think it was a divisive message and I think the country comes out of this election just as divided as it was before.”

Watch above via Fox News.