For a few weeks after the conventions, Clinton’s lead over the 70-year-old real estate tycoon was almost 10 percentage points.
Advertisement
But the poll found Trump is trailing Clinton in this area across the country, even in some very red states. But most voters say they still expect to see Clinton prevail in November, and 59 percent think she will be the one to get to 270 electoral votes vs. 34 percent who think Trump has the better shot at winning.
All of this will undoubtedly be discussed at the first presidential debate, scheduled for later this month, September 26, at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York.
Clinton’s biggest advantage heading into the fall campaign may be that Trump squandered an entire summer that could have been used capitalizing on the Democrat’s shaky standing with voters – or improving his own. Clinton leads by 23 points among white women with college degrees.
“She doesn’t have the energy to bring ’em back”, he told reporters.
Democratic strategist and pollster Celinda Lake noted that Trump has consistently trailed by about 12 points where Romney was among married women in 2012. But it can be hard to remember those simple truths when we’re being bombarded by bullshit: Bullshit from Trump’s relentless mouth, from networks forced to stretch two hours of news into 24 hours of programming, from the Clinton campaign claiming Trump is not just a dumbass but a possible Russian agent. Libertarian Sean Haugh had 4% support, and 16% percent were undecided.
Among voters overall, Trump does slightly better than Clinton (40 per cent to 39 per cent) on the handling of veterans issues. The gap was within the poll’s margin of error.
You’ve heard it a bajillion times at this point: Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are the two most unpopular major party presidential candidates on record.
The poll follows several national polls in August suggesting that the margin between the two candidates had tightened following the conventions. The former secretary of state also leads in all the traditional swing states, but in most cases her advantage is fewer than five points – evidence that the race isn’t over yet.
Among voters overall, a smaller majority (52 per cent) said they would not be confident in her ability to serve.
Trump practically has to sweep those states to win. Meanwhile, the survey shows Trump leading Clinton in OH but only by a nominal three points.
Why, then, is there so much anxiety among Clinton supporters?
“The fact that our intelligence professionals are now studying this and taking it seriously raises some grave questions about potential Russian interference with our electoral process”, Clinton said.
However, it includes some genuinely eyebrow-raising findings, including a one-point Clinton lead in, of all places, Texas, and a tight race in reliably Republican Mississippi.
The next G-20 summit will be in Hamburg, Germany – featuring a new U.S. President, whether Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump.
Clinton is meeting with foreign policy leaders on Friday to shape her campaign platform. Clinton is favored in the polls, but this contest is not over.
Advertisement
But even despite the ocean between Trump and Clinton, it’s easy to see how people might be undecided yet in this election, especially given the new prominence that Johnson and Stein have this year. When asked which candidate is more honest and trustworthy, 94 percent of Trump’s backers say he is, while just 70 percent of those behind Clinton choose her, with 11 percent saying Trump is more trustworthy and 17 percent saying neither of them are.
