CNN political director David Chalian broke down on Wednesday how Vice President Kamala Harris is faring significantly better than President Joe Biden had against Republican nominee Donald Trump.
A new CNN poll found there is “no clear leader” between Trump and Harris, with the former president holding a 49% to 46% lead over Harris compared to the six-point lead he held over Biden in April and June. Chalian said Harris is “making up ground” with key groups of voters.
The latest polling shows Trump holding a slight lead among independent voters 46% to 43%, while the former president led this same group of voters against Biden by roughly 10 points.
“Biden was losing independents to Trump in the last couple months, according to our polling by roughly, ten points. Now Harris is losing them by three, though remember, Biden won them by thirteen points in 2020 when he won that election,” Chalian said.
Biden dropped out of the race on Sunday after facing growing calls from his fellow Democrats to allow a different nominee to run against Trump. He endorsed Harris within minutes of announcing his departure from the race, and she has secured overwhelming support among the Democratic coalition.
Chalian also pointed to Harris faring better among voters in several demographics, including being between the ages of 18 to 34, black, Hispanic or female, in comparison to Biden. Trump held a seven point advantage against Biden among the 18 to 34 age demographic, while Harris currently leads the Republican nominee by four points, according to the CNN poll. (RELATED: Trump Takes Lead In State Republican Hasn’t Won In 20 Years: POLL)
Trump’s lead among Hispanic voters decreased from 9 points against Biden to 2 points once Harris became the presumptive nominee, the poll found. Harris also holds a larger lead than Biden among female voters by five points, 50% to 45%, while Trump and Biden tied 46% to 46% among the female demographic in April and June.
“I just want to note again, Donald Trump, numerically ahead among Hispanic voters within the margin of error. That was a key group in 2020 that Biden won overwhelmingly. So still work there to do for the Democrats,” Chalian said. “And among female voters, you see, that Harris has increased the lead where they were tied among women when it was Biden on the ticket.”
CNN Political Director Breaks Down How Harris Is Polling Against Trump Days Following Campaign Launch pic.twitter.com/ZeYEMfG0Rg
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Chalian also emphasized how Democratic-leaning voters are nearly split on whether Harris should continue Biden’s policies or take the U.S. in a new direction.
“One of the numbers that just jumped off the page when the poll came back, Dana [Bash], was this was among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents. Do you want the next Democratic nominee, her name is Kamala Harris … to continue Biden’s policies or take the U.S. in a new direction? 53%. 53% say continue Biden’s policies. 47% say take in a new direction. A near even split among Democrats looking for a new direction here. I think that is very interesting to watch for and how Kamala Harris campaigns on that,” Chalian said.
The poll further found that less Democratic leaning voters are backing the party candidate to vote against Trump with Harris on the ticket. Fifty percent of voters are voting for Harris rather than against Trump, while 63% of those voters said they were voting against the former president with Biden on the ticket.
“Take a look at what a difference a couple days make. For Harris, now it splits evenly. 50% said they are casting their vote for her. 50% say they’re doing it against Trump. Look at what that was when Biden was the nominee,” Chalian continued. “Two-thirds of his votes were against Trump, only about a third, 37%, were for him. Harris changes that equation.”
Almost three-quarters, 74%, of Trump voters are voting in support of the Republican nominee rather than against Harris, according to the poll.
The poll surveyed 1,631 registered voters between July 22-23 with a 3 percent margin of error. The survey questioned the same voters who participated in the poll released in April or June.
Trump held a 46% to 42% lead against Biden following the assassination attempt at a July 13 rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, according to a Morning Consult poll from Friday. CNN’s John King pointed to electoral data on Thursday finding that Trump held a solid percentage of support against Biden in key battleground states, including Arizona and Virginia.
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