Topline
Former President Donald Trump leads Vice President Kamala Harris by three or fewer points in four surveys taken after President Joe Biden dropped his re-election bid—but trails Harris in a fifth survey.
Democratic presidential candidate, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, disembarks Air Force Two at … [+]
Key Facts
Trump leads Harris by three points, 49% to 46%, in an online CNN/SSRS survey taken July 22-23; by two points, 47% to 45%, in a Morning Consult poll; and by one point, 46% to 45%, in a NPR/PBS/Marist poll.
Harris is up 44% to 42% over Trump in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted Monday and Tuesday, and leads by four points (42%-38%) in a hypothetical matchup with Trump when Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (8%) is on the ballot.
Meanwhile, an Economist/YouGov poll conducted Sunday to Tuesday showed Trump leading Harris 44% to 41% and Kennedy with 5%.
Ipsos and Reuters’ previous poll taken July 15-16 found Harris and Trump tied at 44%, while a July 1-2 poll found Trump led by one point—though it’s unclear how polls taken when Harris was still only a hypothetical candidate will differ from those taken after she became the likely nominee.
The CNN/SSRS survey and Morning Consult polls also found Harris performs better than Biden against Trump—Biden trailed Trump by six points in Morning Consult surveys taken before he exited the race and by six points in CNN/SSRS surveys taken in April and June.
In a stark contrast with sentiment surrounding Biden’s mental fitness, 56% of voters polled by Reuters/Ipsos said Harris was “mentally sharp and able to deal with challenges,” compared to 49% who said the same about Trump and 22% for Biden.
NPR/PBS/Marist also found 87% of respondents think Biden’s decision to drop out of the race was the right thing to do, while 41% of voters, including 65% of Democrats, think it increases the party’s chances of winning in November.
Tangent
Most polls taken prior to Biden ending his bid found the president and Harris performing roughly the same against Trump, who had slightly expanded his narrow lead over Biden in the wake of Biden’s disastrous June debate performance. A Forbes/HarrisX poll conducted July 19-21 showed Trump leading both Biden and Harris by six points, a two-point jump in his lead over Harris and a four-point increase in his lead over Biden since the groups’ previous poll conducted July 13-15. A Yahoo/YouGov poll conducted July 19-22 found Trump and Harris tied in a head-to-head matchup, and Harris trailing by two points in a six-way race with third-party candidates on the ballot. A CBS News/YouGov poll conducted last week showed Trump leading Harris by three points and Biden by five. An Economist/YouGov poll conducted July 13-16 found Biden would lose to Trump 41% to 43%, while Harris would perform slightly worse, losing to Trump 39% to 44%.
Big Number
1.9. That’s how many points Trump leads Harris by in Real Clear Politics’ polling average, which includes the Morning Consult poll and nine others conducted before Biden dropped out. The average does not include the Reuters/Ipsos poll released Tuesday. Trump led Biden by 3.1 points as of Sunday, when Biden dropped out of the race, a 1.6-point increase from June 27, the day of the debate, according to Real Clear Politics’ polling average.
Contra
Trump campaign pollster Tony Fabrizio predicted a “short term” bump in polls for Harris in the coming weeks as her entrance into the race is expected to re-energize Democrats, referring to the anticipated boost as a “Harris Honeymoon,” in a memo released shortly after the Reuters/Ipsos poll was made public.
Key Background
Biden dropped out of the race Sunday after resisting growing calls from within his own party to end his re-election bid in the wake of the June 27 debate. Prior to dropping out, Biden trailed Trump by 3.1 points in the RealClearPolitics average, a 1.6-point jump since the debate. Biden immediately endorsed Harris and she announced plans to seek the nomination. The party has quickly coalesced around her, with all Democratic governors and the majority of Democrats in Congress backing her. On Monday, she effectively clinched the Democratic nomination as more than half of all delegates have announced plans to formally vote to nominate her—something the party is expected to do in the first week of August.
Further Reading
Trump’s Lead Over Biden And Harris Jumped After RNC, HarrisX/Forbes Poll Finds (Forbes)
Here’s How Kamala Harris Performs In Polls Against Trump—As Biden Drops Out And Endorses Harris (Forbes)
2022 midterms, 2024 presidential campaign, the January 6 House committee investigation, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s historic ouster, the 2023 State of the Union Address, former President Donald Trump’s federal election interference and classified documents cases and his Manhattan hush money case. Dorn graduated in 2012 from the University of Dayton with a degree in journalism. Prior to joining Forbes, she covered New York City and state politics for the New York Post and City and State magazine. Follow her for updates and analysis on the 2024 presidential race, key Senate and House races and developments in Congress and at the White House.
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