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Here’s who’s in charge in the key 2024 election battlegrounds

Here’s who’s in charge in the key 2024 election battlegrounds

Topline

The swing state race between former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris is tied, with Harris maintaining a slight lead in the Upper Midwest and Nevada, while Trump is narrowly leading in the Southeast and Arizona – although Georgia and North Carolina are in new polls remain close. Thursday, and must-win Pennsylvania is essentially a toss-up.

Key facts

North Carolina: Harris leads 48%-47% in a CNN/SSRS poll released Thursday (margin of error 4.5 points), an outlier among several other polls this week showing Trump ahead, including a Fox News survey showing him scoring 49%-47% (or 50%-49% without third parties), while leading 50%-48% in surveys published this past week by the Cooperative election study, Marist And Emerson College. FiveThirtyEights average shows Trump with a lead of 1.2 points.

Georgia: Trump has a 48%-47% lead on Thursday CNN/SSRS poll (margin of error 4.7), and he’s up more substantially 51%-46% in the CES survey (2,663 respondents) and 49.9%-48.4% in last week’s survey Bloomberg pollalthough for a Marist they are equal at 49% poll (margin of error 3.9), and a Washington Post-Schar poll (margin of error 4.5) found Harris ahead 51%-47%. Trump leads by 1.8 points in FiveThirtyEight’s poll average.

Pennsylvania: It can’t get any closer: the candidates are tied at 48% Fox News And CNN/SSRS polls released Wednesday, and it’s 49%-49% in a CBS/YouGov surveyand while Trump is up 47%-46% in a Quinnipiac poll and 50%-49% if Fox News eliminates third parties, Harris has a 49%-48% lead in a major Cooperative election study survey (3,685 respondents). Monmouth found Trump is up 47%-46% among all registered voters, but Harris leads 48%-47% among people who vote in most elections. Overall, Trump leads Harris by 0.4 points in FiveThirtyEight’s poll average.

Michigan: Trump has a rare lead in a Washington Post poll released Thursday showing him at 47%-45%, though three other surveys this week show Harris with the lead, including the Fox News poll showing her up 48%-46% (although there is a tie at 49% without third parties), 51%-46% in the CES survey (2,336 respondents) and 48%-43% in the CNN/SSRS poll–while Trump leads 49%-48% in a Emerson Survey released Tuesday (margin of error 3 points). Harris is up 1.1 points in Michigan on FiveThirtyEight’s poll average.

Wisconsin: Harris ranks 50%-47% higher than Trump in the CES survey (1,542 respondents), 51%-45% in the CNN/SSRS poll and 50%-49% in a Marquette Surveywhile Trump is up 49% to 48% in an Emerson questionnaire and the two candidates are tied at 48% in a Quinnipiac poll. Harris is 0.7 points higher in FiveThirtyEight’s average.

Nevada: Harris leads Trump 51%-47% in the CES questionnaire (933 respondents), while Trump is ahead 48%-47% in a CNN/SSRS questionnaire released Tuesday (4.6 point margin of error) and Harris is up 48.8%-48.3% in a Bloomberg poll released on October 23 (margin of error 5). Harris is 0.1 point higher in FiveThirtyEight’s poll average.

Arizona: Trump is up 51%-47% in the CES survey (2,066 respondents), and he leads 50%-49% in a Marist survey poll released on October 24 (margin of error 3.7) and 49%-46% in a Washington Post-Schar School poll (margin of error 5), while Harris leads 48%-47% in a CNN poll this week /SSRS (margin of error 4.4). Trump is up 2.2 points in FiveThirtyEight’s poll average.

Big number

1.4 points. That’s Harris’ lead in FiveThirtyEight’s national polls average.

Important background

Harris became the Democratic nominee after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race on July 21 amid an intraparty revolt in the wake of his debate performance, dramatically changing Democrats’ fortunes. Prior to the shift, polls consistently showed Trump would beat Biden in most battleground states, despite Biden winning six of seven (excluding North Carolina) in the 2020 election.

Read more

Trump vs. Harris 2024 polls: Harris maintains lead in 4 new polls (Forbes)

Michigan 2024 Trump-Harris polls: Harris narrowly leads in one of her key states (Forbes)

Pennsylvania 2024 Trump-Harris polls: Harris has less than 1 point lead in polling averages (Forbes)

North Carolina 2024 Trump-Harris Polls: Nearly Tied in the New 7th Swing State (Forbes)

Trump-Harris Polls in Georgia 2024: Most Surveys Show Trump Ahead in Crucial Swing State (Forbes)

Nevada 2024 Trump-Harris polls: Harris has a narrow lead but struggles with Latino voters (Forbes)

Trump-Harris polls in Wisconsin 2024: Latest surveys show Trump with a slight lead (Forbes)

Trump-Harris polls in Arizona 2024: Trump has advantage in latest Swing State poll (Forbes)