Staff Reports
Poll results are rolling in faster than a Biden gaffe, and the latest findings from Fox News have former President Donald Trump inching ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris in a race that has Democrats sweating more than usual. Conducted between October 11 and 14, the poll shows Trump snatching a 2-point lead from Harris, disturbing her slumber party of political invincibility that she was enjoying just a month ago.
Last month, Harris had the slight edge, but the tide seems to have turned — at least in Trump’s favor. The latest numbers indicate that among likely voters, Trump has jumped ahead with 50% compared to Harris’s 48%. This shift is being labeled a 4-point swing, and even if it’s within the 3-point margin of error, it’s still sweet music to conservative ears as Election Day draws tantalizingly close. Meanwhile, Newsweek has decided to play the cautious commentator but the optimism for Trump remains palpable, especially after that fiery interview with Fox’s Bret Baier that made Harris squirm more than a cat on a hot tin roof.
Kamala Harris completely bombs her interview on Fox News.
She can dodges nearly every question, as she rambles about how bad Trump is.
The Trump campaign is publishing it in full as a “new ad.”
😂😂😂
— Right On News (@RightOnNewsX) October 17, 2024
Just a day before the poll results were released, Harris faced a brutal interrogation from Baier where she was pressed on her administration’s immigration policies and her support for gender-affirming care for convicts. At times, she appeared flustered, which was perhaps the highlight of the evening—watching a high-ranking official struggling to articulate a coherent response is always entertaining. The interview veered into a verbal free-for-all, with each party attempting to overpower the other’s voice. It painfully showcased how out of her depth Harris truly is when pushed on serious issues.
The poll’s cross-tabs reveal key demographics where Trump is enjoying growth. White voters continue to rally behind him, now showing a 10-point lead, a considerable bump from previous months. Senior voters are also warming up to him, with support spiking to 49%. It gets even more interesting as college-educated Americans are coming around, which previously raised eyebrows among conservatives wondering how students could be so misled. On the flip side, Harris is floundering among her base, particularly with Black voters, whose support has dwindled to a disheartening 67%. This should send warning signals flashing for the Democrats, who cannot afford to alienate key demographics.
A Democratic pollster chimed in on Trump’s gains, acknowledging that while the changes are subtle, they could be pivotal come crunch time. It’s worth noting that two-thirds of both candidates’ supporters express enthusiasm for their choices. However, the landscape looks markedly different when digging deeper. A whopping 80% of Trump voters are backing him out of genuine belief in his vision, while a significant portion of Harris’s supporters are merely holding their nose and rooting for her as the anti-Trump option. That’s quite a distinction in the battle for hearts and minds.
Fox’s findings complement recent revelations from swing-state surveys that demonstrate Trump’s appeal in battleground territories. In fact, poll-watching wizard Nate Silver has reported that a staggering 19 states have shifted in Trump’s favor, including the all-important Pennsylvania, where panic seems to have set in among Harris’s team, who are all too vocal about the train-wreck that is their campaign operation in the state’s largest city. If Harris can’t turn things around quickly, she’ll find herself more on the sidelines than on the campaign trail, and voters will certainly remember the spectacle.
