Democrats appear well positioned ahead of the midterm elections, both in terms of voter preference and enthusiasm. A new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll shows 50 percent of registered voters prefer a Congress controlled by Democrats while 40 percent say they would rather have one controlled by Republicans. That marks a widening of the Democratic lead from the January poll that showed Democrats with a six-point edge. Significantly, Independent voters also seem to be leaning toward the Democrats by a 12-point margin.

Democrats are also much more excited about the prospect of heading to the polls with 60 percent saying they have a high degree of interest in the upcoming elections while 54 percent of Republicans feel the same way.

The Democratic lead is widening ahead of the midterms even as the poll finds that President Donald Trump’s approval ratings are ticking upward with 43 percent of Americans seeing his tenure positively. That still puts him at the lowest level for any modern president at this point of his presidency, but is still four points higher than it was two months ago. His disapproval ratings are also less dramatic, with 53 percent of Americans saying they disapprove of the president’s job performance, which is lower than the 57 percent who felt that way in January.

“Survey to survey, numbers bounce around. But today’s state of play continues to tell the same story — a president with lower than average job approval starting his second year with a Democratic edge in the midterms,” GOP pollster Bill McInturff said.

Another interesting bit of information from the poll is how the FBI is one of the most popular institutions, with 48 percent seeing it in a positive light. That could be a bad sign for Trump as he launches a full-throated offensive against the bureau.