WASHINGTON – New polls published on August 10 reveal that US Vice-President Kamala Harris now holds a lead over Donald Trump in three crucial battleground states, marking a shift in the electoral landscape that had previously favored Trump over the past year.
The polls, conducted by The New York Times and Siena College among likely voters, indicate that Harris leads Trump by a 50 percent to 46 percent margin in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin—three pivotal Midwestern states that are essential for either party’s victory under the US electoral college system.
This marks a significant turnaround from nearly a year of polling in these states, where Trump had either been tied with or held a slight lead over Democratic President Joe Biden, who recently withdrew from the race and endorsed Harris.
Although the election is still nearly three months away, the polls show that while voters prefer Trump on key issues like the economy and immigration, Harris enjoys a 24-point lead in trust on the issue of abortion.
Democrats have been buoyed by the surge in enthusiasm following Harris’s candidacy, especially after the 81-year-old Biden stepped aside. Her announcement of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate on Tuesday has further energized the Democratic base. The Harris-Walz ticket has also cut short the momentum Trump gained after the July 13 assassination attempt and the successful Republican National Convention last month.
Harris’s favorability has seen a significant rise, particularly in Pennsylvania, where she gained 10 points among registered voters in just one month, according to the Times/Siena poll. Voters see her as more intelligent and possessing a better temperament for governance compared to Trump.
Despite various attacks from Trump, his running mate J.D. Vance, and other Republicans—including Trump questioning Harris’s racial identity—the polls show strong Democratic support for the younger and more dynamic Harris, who, along with Walz, has been actively campaigning in swing states this week.
Voter satisfaction among Democrats with their choice of candidates has surged by 27 points in the three Midwestern states since May, the polls found, in contrast to the higher satisfaction levels previously expressed by Republicans. The surveys were conducted between August 5 and 9, with at least 600 voters participating in each state.