Democrats have a “math problem” in their hopes to regain control of the Senate in the midterms.
That’s according to CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten, who burst the Democrats’ bubble by breaking down the results of new polling from the New York Times and Siena College. While the minority party is confident it can flip the needed four seats to gain control of the upper chamber, Enten threw cold water on their optimism.
“Democrats need a net gain of four four senate seats to regain control of the upper chamber in Congress. And right now, the math, simply put, isn’t there for them. That is the picture. It’s a math problem,” Enten told CNN’s John Berman on Wednesday.
Right now, Dems have a math problem in taking back the Senate.
They need a net pickup of 4 seats & lead in 1 GOP held seat (NC). Rest are ties or GOP ahead.
Problem is the fundamentals…. Median of key 6 states: GOP with +6 on generic ballot. 53% say Dem party too far left. pic.twitter.com/FUdQRfXIAB
— (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) July 1, 2026
Despite the Democrats’ lead in North Carolina, where Roy Cooper is facing off against Republican Michael Whatley, they are trailing Republicans in other key Senate races, according to the poll, including in Iowa, Alaska, and Ohio.
“That gets you one seat. But, of course, you need four seats. And on this board, red, red, red, close races, and a tie. You’re at one. You’re not yet to four,” Enten remarked.
“I mean, the good news for Democrats might be they’re close in Texas, Iowa, Alaska and Ohio. But again, it needs to be four of these that are blue in order for them to retake it,” Berman pointed out.
“On the mathematical march to four seats, there’s really only one seat at this point that Democrats look like they can count on. They probably win one of these other seats. But again, that gets you only to two and you need four,” Enten said.
Control of the Senate Is Up for Grabs, Times/Siena Polls Find https://t.co/Vp7JJXQ0js
— John Anzalone (@JohnAnzo) July 1, 2026
The states in play, Enten noted, are seen as red states, and the Democrats’ hard shift to the left has affected their own base.
“So these are states that are just very hard to win because, bottom line, what is holding them back? What is holding them back is the fundamentals,” he said.
“Look, Democrats have a shot here. There are seats on the table, but the fundamentals are against them… The mathematical problem is there for Democrats at this point. They, simply put, have a statistical math problem,” Enten added.
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
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