Harris, Trump was locked in deadly heat in battleground Wisconsin

Former President Donald Trump and vice president Kamala Harris are locked in a dead heat in the state of Wisconsin, according to an exclusive new USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll.

With about a week until Election Day, Trump and Harris are nearly tied in Wisconsin, 48% to 47%, the statewide poll of 500 likely voters shows. The results fall within the poll’s margin of error of 4.4 percentage points. The poll was conducted from October 20 to 23.

But in Door County, Wisconsin, which plays an important role for the state, Harris has a narrow lead. Harris leads Trump in that regard 50% to 47%, according to the poll of 300 likely voters from Door County. The results are still within the margin of error of 5.7 percentage points.

Wisconsin, which has 10 electoral votes, is one of several key swing states that both Trump and Harris want to help catapult them to the presidency.

The state is taken into account as a ‘Blue Wall’ state – along with Michigan and Pennsylvania – which were Democratic strongholds for decades. Trump flipped all three states in 2016, helping him win the presidency. In 2020, Biden won back all three states.

Most Wisconsin voters have already made up their minds, with just 2% saying they are still undecided.

One voter, Robert Olin of Milwaukee, said he will vote for Trump because he is disappointed with the way the current administration has handled multiple policies — from the economy, to foreign policy in the Middle East, to issues at the border between the US and Mexico. He said he believes Trump’s policies would improve the country.

“I fully agree with his position on healing the country, becoming a country that follows its laws, that is not controlled by the media or other parties, and that recognizes that there are practical ways to solve the economic problems ,” said 68-year-old Olin. from Trump. He also voted for Trump in the last election.

For Olin, the high costs across the country have affected him personally. He owns a coffee shop and said high inflation since the pandemic has been “very, very dramatic” for his business. The costs to keep his business running have increased and now buying a cup of coffee has become a luxury for most customers.

“If our business hurts, I hurt too,” he said.

But Mary Beth LaHaye, also of Milwaukee, plans to cast her vote for Harris. The 70-year-old said she is impressed by Harris’ willingness to work across the aisle and bring both sides back together.

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“Our political system is broken right now,” LaHaye said. She said her top priorities are keeping Social Security and Medicare intact, and restoring reproductive rights.

LaHaye, who voted for President Joe Biden in 2020, said she is concerned about Trump’s rhetoric and whether he would accept the election results.

“I know that if Trump were to win, Kamala Harris would not storm the Capitol,” she said. “But if Kamala Harris wins, I don’t know what President Trump could say that could incite people to act violently like he did on January 6 (2021).”

A wider gender gap

While there typically a gender gap between Trump and Harris supporters, David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center, said the effects of the divide in the state are more apparent.

In Wisconsin, Harris has a 14-point lead over Trump among women, 55% to 41%. But Trump has risen 18 percentage points among men over Harris, from 56% to 38%.

Harris’s margin of support among women is slightly lower than her support nationwide, while Trump’s lead among men remains consistent. Nationally, Harris has a 17-point lead over Trump among female voters, 53% to 36%, according to the latest figures. USA TODAY/Suffolk University national poll. Among men, Trump has a 16 percentage point lead over Harris nationally, from 53% to 37%.

“(Trump) identifies, or that, men are mobilizing more behind Trump than when Biden ran against Trump,” Paleologos said.

Paul Zarling of Brookfield, Wisconsin, said he is voting for Trump because the former president already has a proven record. He added that he is not sure what Harris has done as vice president and that he feels she has flip-flopped on issues.

“He was president before nothing happened, there was no doom and gloom,” said 47-year-old Zarling, who has generally voted for Republicans in the past.

Mary Kay Wagner, 69, of South Milwaukee, has already voted for Harris in this election. Wagner, who considers himself an independent, voted for Biden in 2020. She said she believes Harris can improve the economy and help restore access to abortion.

“The reason I voted for her is because she takes a very pragmatic approach to the issues facing the country,” Wagner said. “Knowing that if we get a dynamic and growing economy, it will make it possible for everyone to thrive.”

In Door County, Paleologos attributed the gender gap, as well as a higher average age level, as why the county may perform better for vice president.

“The demographics of Door County may be a little more off than usual in this election,” he said. “So I think that’s why the councilman is a little bit more Democratic friendly.”

Some voters are still divided – and dissatisfied

Although a majority of voters have already made their decision, there is still a small portion of voters in the state who are still undecided on who they will support for president.

Susan Sauerberg of Cedarburg said access to abortions and women’s reproductive health are policies high on her list — and something she thinks Trump will make even harder for women. But when it comes to foreign policy, especially Israel’s war in Gaza, Sauerberg doesn’t know if Harris can handle it.

“I’m going to vote,” said Sauerberg (60). “Maybe I just say a prayer and follow what my gut tells me at that moment.”

And for Samuel Beaver, a 20-year-old college student living in Madison, neither Trump nor Harris were a good option for him. Beaver, whose mother is Nicaraguan, said Trump was never an option for him because of his comments and policies on immigration. But Harris, he said, has reversed many of her policies, including on trans rights and gender-affirming care.

Beaver said he will vote for the Green Party’s Jill Stein instead.

“The most pressing issue on my mind is the foreign policy of the United States, especially the inequality between the Republican Party and the Democratic Party,” he said. “I feel like they’re both taking the same actions.”

Sarah Paul, a 43-year-old Random Lake resident, said she will vote for Harris. She supports Harris’ passion for abortion access and LGBTQ issues, and believes Trump’s demeaning words about members of the military and people with disabilities are “not what a president should do.”

“Our choices are not perfect,” she said. “They rarely are.”