Vice President Kamala Harris gained a 2-point edge over former President Donald Trump in a new national poll.
The survey from NPR, PBS News and Marist found that Ms. Harris leads Mr. Trump 50% to 48% nationally, though her slim advantage is within the poll’s margin for error.
Ms. Harris is underperforming among independent voters, however, trailing Mr. Trump by 4 points. President Biden carried independent voters by 13 points in 2020.
Marist’s poll, released Thursday, showed that the gender gap of support for the candidates is wide. Men overwhelmingly support Mr. Trump 57%-41%. Conversely, Ms. Harris has an 18-point lead with women.
“With the campaigns in high gear, no one has closed the sale,” Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, said. “Under the hood, the gender gap continues to widen and, at this rate, the gender gap in this year’s election results will likely outpace what it has been historically.”
Previous polling found that the economy was the No. 1 concern among voters, particularly in swing states. But Marist’s poll found that preserving democracy is the top issue for voters nationally, 64%, followed by the economy, 59%, and immigration, 44%.
While immigration isn’t the top concern for voters, at least 59% of those surveyed believe that migrants should be deported. Most Republicans, 89%, and a majority of independents, 58%, feel that way, while only 32% of Democrats say illegal immigrants should be removed from the country.
Mr. Trump’s favorability with voters is underwater, with 51% of survey participants not liking him. Ms. Harris is only marginally better in that category, with 47% of voters holding an unfavorable view of her.
Over three-quarters, or 76%, of voters believe the Nov. 5 election will be fair, but most voters, 58%, are worried about election fraud.
The poll was conducted from Sept. 27-Oct. 1 with 1,628 people.
• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washingtontimes.com.
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