The Hill News

Voters see both Republicans and Democrats in Congress as being ethically equal, according to a new poll.

Fifty-three percent of registered voters view Democratic lawmakers as ethical, while 52 percent view GOP lawmakers as being generally ethical.

By contrast, 45 percent of the public said they view Republicans as unethical â€" the same percentage who say Democrats are unethical, according to a new CNN/Opinion Research poll released Thursday.

The even numbers come against a backdrop where two senior Democratic lawmakers face separate, high-profile ethics trials before Congress once lawmakers return to Washington in September. The accusations could add to the election-year funk facing Democrats this November, when voters head to the polls to decide whether or not they want to return Republicans to power.

To make things worse, Reps. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.), a former powerful committee chairman, and Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), th! e two lawmakers awaiting trial, have defiantly refused to settle the case, running the risk of turning their trials into a public spectacle.

Republicans suffered their own ethics difficulties before losing the House in 2006, with two of their members having been convicted on corruption charges. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-Texas) was indicted, and other GOP members' relationship with disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff loomed over the party.

The CNN poll, conducted August 6-10, has a 3 percent margin of error.