CLEVELAND — Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are tied in the battleground state of Ohio, according to a poll released Thursday, the final day of the Republican National Convention.
In a head-to-head matchup, Mr. Trump and Mrs. Clinton were tied at 44 percent in the Suffolk University poll, with 11 percent undecided. The survey was conducted from Monday to Wednesday — the first three days of the Republican National Convention.
In a four-way contest, Mrs. Clinton had a 4-point lead, 43 percent to 39 percent, over Mr. Trump, with Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson at 5 percent and Green Party candidate Jill Stein at 1 percent.
A majority of likely Ohio voters said they have an unfavorable view of both Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Trump. Mrs. Clinton had a 41 percent/51 percent favorable/unfavorable split, and Mr. Trump had a 38 percent/53 percent split.
“These largely negative views of the candidates come despite heavy Clinton campaign advertising in Ohio leading up to the Republican Convention and Trump’s efforts to humanize his candidacy with multiple prime-time speeches from family members,” said David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center in Boston.
“The Ohio-based Republican convention might have been expected to give Trump a bump among that state’s voters, yet their dislike of both major-party candidates is translating into unease about the upcoming election,” Mr. Paleologos said.
Fifty-five percent said the presidential election has them feeling alarmed, with 28 percent excited and 8 percent bored.
Forty-five percent said Mrs. Clinton should have been indicted over her private email set-up, while 44 percent said they disagreed.
Fifty-seven percent said they don’t agree with Mr. Trump’s contention that weak leadership from President Obama and Mrs. Clinton has led to the rise of the Islamic State terrorist groups and recent terrorist attacks.
But a plurality of voters, 48 percent to 45 percent, said they agree with Mr. Trump’s proposal to temporarily ban Muslim immigrants and immigrants from terrorist hotbeds from entering the United States. Fifty-two percent also said Muslim Americans are loyal citizens and allies in the fight against terrorism, and 29 percent said Muslim Americans need special scrutiny because of the threat of terrorism from their communities.
Fifty-five percent said they feel less safe living in America than they did five to 10 years ago, while 12 percent said more safe and 32 percent said there was no change.
Rep. Michael T. McCaul, Texas Republican and chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, modified a line from former President Ronald Reagan by asking convention attendees a similar question this week: “Are you safer than you were eight years ago?”
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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