Fox News co-host Jessica Tarlov challenged her fellow panelists on Thursday’s edition of The Five after Jesse Watters cited a recent Fox News poll to argue that the Democratic Party has moved out of step with the views of many Americans.
At the beginning of the program, Watters highlighted findings from the Fox News survey, pointing to numbers showing that majorities of Democrats expressed support for “Socialism” and the “DSA,” while only 41% of Democrats said they supported “Capitalism.”
The poll quickly became a focal point of the discussion, with Republican-leaning panelists arguing the findings reflected growing divisions within the Democratic Party and a shift away from positions they said resonate with the broader electorate.
Later in the show, however, Tarlov returned to the same survey and argued that other results painted a very different picture heading into the midterm elections.
“But there was a lot more to that Fox poll,” Tarlov said. “And it was absolutely brutal for Republicans.”
She pointed to polling numbers she said showed Democrats holding an advantage over Republicans on several issues that could prove decisive with voters.
According to Tarlov, Democrats led Republicans by a margin of 53% to 46% overall. She also cited numbers from counties where presidential elections are typically decided by fewer than 10 percentage points, saying Democrats held a 59% to 41% advantage on issues including inflation, prices and the economy.
Tarlov added that Democrats were ahead among a wide range of demographic groups, including younger voters, older voters, women and independents.
She argued that the only voter group in which President Donald Trump held an advantage was white voters, where she said Republicans led by just a single percentage point.
“That is the election that Democrats are thinking about,” Tarlov said as she attempted to make the case that the broader polling landscape favored her party despite ongoing disagreements among Democrats.
Her comments prompted immediate pushback from co-host Brian Kilmeade, who argued Democratic leaders were not focused on the issues Tarlov described.
“Should be thinking about, but they’re not,” Kilmeade interjected.
“No, they are,” Tarlov replied.
Kilmeade continued by pointing to the Michigan U.S. Senate race, arguing that if Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed were to emerge, Republican candidate Mike Rogers would have a clear advantage.
“But some of these candidates, if they emerge — if El-Sayed emerges, I mean, Rogers walks to that,” Kilmeade said.
Tarlov questioned that assessment before being interrupted again during the discussion.
“Well, I don’t know if he walks,” she responded.
As the exchange wrapped up, Tarlov argued that Trump remains the central political figure motivating voters on both sides of the political spectrum.
“Donald Trump is an animating factor in an election for the people who like him and the people who hate him,” she said.
Tarlov concluded by arguing that, despite ongoing infighting within the Democratic Party, she believes Trump remains Democrats’ strongest political advantage heading into the upcoming midterm elections.
The spirited debate underscored the differing interpretations of the same Fox News poll, with panelists reaching sharply different conclusions about what the survey could mean for the political landscape in November.
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