Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are neck and neck in the Rust Belt, home to battleground states that could make or break the election for either candidate.
The latest Siena College and New York Times poll released Saturday, less than 40 days until the Nov. 5 election, showed Ms. Harris with a small lead over Mr. Trump in Michigan, 1 point, and Wisconsin, 2 points, while the former president led his Democratic opponent by 5 points in Ohio.
Both of Ms. Harris’ narrow margins over Mr. Trump were within the survey’s margin of error.
Overall, voters in the trio of states viewed Ms. Harris as a more favorable candidate, 48%, than Mr. Trump, 47%, while more voters across the three states identified as leaning toward the Republican Party, 49%, than the Democrats, 45%.
The economy, abortion and immigration were the top three issues for voters in each state, and voters believed that Mr. Trump would do a better job of dealing with the economy and immigration, while Ms. Harris would do better with abortion.
The survey also included the standings in the three Senate races in each state, where the Democratic candidates all led their Republican opponents.
In Wisconsin, Sen. Tammy Baldwin led her Republican opponent, Eric Hovde, by 7 points. In the race to replace retiring Michigan Democrat Sen. Debbie Stabenow, Rep. Elissa Slotkin led Republican Mike Rogers by 5 points. In Ohio, Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown led Republican Bernie Moreno by 4 points.
The Rust Belt survey was conducted from Sept. 21-26 and included responses from 2,055 voters across each state.
The Siena College poll also included data on Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, which has become a bellwether for presidential contests. President Biden flipped the district in 2020 and won it by nearly 7 points.
Of the 680 voters surveyed in the congressional district, 51% said they would support Ms. Harris compared with 42% backing Mr. Trump.
Earlier this week, state lawmakers in Nebraska tried and failed to change the state’s Electoral College count to a winner-take-all system, which would likely have benefited Mr. Trump.
• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washingtontimes.com.
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