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Former President Donald Trump is currently leading Vice President Kamala Harris in five swing states, according to the first Emerson College Polling/The Hill survey conducted since President Joe Biden announced the end of his re-election campaign.
Trump, 78, is reportedly leading Harris, 58, in support among voters by a 49% to 44% margin in Arizona, 48% to 46% in Georgia, 46% to 45% in Michigan and 48% to 46% in Pennsylvania, while the two candidates are tied at 47% in Wisconsin. Harris is, however, gaining momentum, having previously surpassed Biden in a previous poll conducted earlier this month, prior to the president's announcement to end his re-election campaign.
“Harris has recovered a portion of the vote for the Democrats on the presidential ticket since the fallout after the June 27 debate,” said Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling. “Harris’ numbers now reflect similar support levels to those of Biden back in March.
“Young voters have shifted toward Harris: her support compared to Biden increased by 16 points in Arizona, eight in Georgia, five in Michigan, 11 in Pennsylvania, and one in Wisconsin since earlier polling this month.”
Harris is also reportedly leading Trump, 44% to 42% in a national poll conducted by Reuters/Ipsos poll. The vice president was previously tied with Trump at 44% in a July 15-16 survey and trailed the former president by 1% point in a July 1-2 poll, both of which were conducted amid speculation, but prior to Biden's official drop out announcement.
YouGov.com also conducted a survey on Sunday (July 21), which showed that 60% of Democrats would nominate Harris as their new candidate for president while 21% chose "someone else" and 19% said they were "not sure." The vice president also received the majority of support from "all adults" with 37% choosing her while 35% opted for "someone else" and 27% said they were "not sure."
Harris has already crossed the threshold of the 1,976 pledged delegates needed to win the nomination on the first ballot and raised $49.6 million in grassroots donations within one day of officially announcing her presidential campaign, CNN reports. The vice president currently has no credible challenger for the Democratic nomination and the endorsement of several top officials within the party including President Biden, who said he wanted to "offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year" in a post shared on his social media accounts.
Trump said he doesn't want the 25th Amendment invoked against Biden after his decision to end his campaign as he claimed putting Harris in office was more "dangerous" while calling into FOX & Friends Thursday (July 25) morning.