NBC News national political correspondent Steve Kornacki said Tuesday that Republicans can find comfort in former President Donald Trump’s current poll numbers based on his results in past presidential runs compared to projections.
Vice President Kamala Harris holds a 4% polling lead over Trump nationally but failed to surge after the Democratic National Convention in August, according to an ABC News/Ipsos poll released Sunday. Kornacki, on “Ana Cabrera Reports,” noted that despite his current polling deficit, Trump remains a strong contender in the electoral college, having outperformed polling expectations in both 2016 and 2020. (RELATED: Trump Has Had Years To Chip Away At A Key Dem Voting Bloc. Can Harris Make Up For Lost Time?)
WATCH:
Steve Kornacki Says GOP ‘Can Take Solace’ In Trump’s Polling Position As He’s Used To Running ‘From Behind’ pic.twitter.com/daxGd9QbA6
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“If you’re a Republican, what you can take solace from here is, this is not unfamiliar territory for Donald Trump. Take a look here at the last two elections, 2020, 2016, the polling at this point coming out of Labor Day, beginning the fall rush,” Kornacki told host Ana Cabrera. “In 2016, Hillary Clinton led on average by five points. Of course, Donald Trump won in 2016. And Joe Biden had an even bigger lead on average, Labor Day 2020. Donald Trump didn’t win that election, but certainly in the electoral college, he came this close to doing so, Ana. So Trump has run from behind before, certainly.”
Trump leads Harris by 8% among voters on who they trust to handle the economy and inflation, according to the ABC News/Ipsos poll. Voters also trust him over Harris by 9% on immigration and 7% on the Israel-Hamas conflict.
When President Joe Biden ended his reelection campaign on July 21, Trump led the president by 3.1% in a national head-to-head matchup, according to the RealClearPolitics average of polls.
“If you’re a Democrat, the good news, besides the fact that you’re ahead, is that’s an improvement for Democrats from where things were before Harris became the candidate,” Kornacki said earlier in the segment. “Joe Biden almost all year was trailing Donald Trump, so that’s changed, Harris ahead by a few points there.”
Journalist Peter Hamby warned comedian Bill Maher on Friday that young men shifting their support to Trump could be lethal to Harris’ presidential campaign.
“This is a real issue for Kamala Harris, though,” Hamby said. “Like, this could be fatal for her campaign … Democrats need to win 60% of the youth vote to win the White House.”
“Hillary came up short; Obama did it; Biden did it. Kamala Harris is right now at, like, 55% of the youth vote,” he added. “If she doesn’t get to 60, she could lose the election, and it’s because young men, Gen Z men, are breaking to Trump.”
Democratic strategist James Carville on Tuesday urged Harris in a New York Times opinion essay to “clearly and decisively break from” Biden in her policy agenda to beat Trump.
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