By EFE
Aug 14, 2024, 3:44 PM EDT
US Vice President Kamala Harris has cut in half the lead in Florida that Republican candidate Donald Trump held in June over his then-rival, President Jose Biden, according to a Florida Atlantic University (FAU) poll released on Wednesday.
The former president (2017-2021) leads the Democratic candidate by three percentage points (50%-47%) among likely voters. 2% of voters surveyed said they were undecided and 1% said they would vote for a third candidate.
Last June, Trump had a 6-point lead (49%-43%) over Biden, who on July 21 gave up running for re-election and appointed Harris as his successor after criticism of her advanced age, 81 years old, and her poor performance in the debate with the Republican.
“The narrowing gap between Trump and Harris is consistent with the narrowing we’ve seen in other states,” said Kevin Wagner, a political science professor and co-director of FAU’s polling lab.
“If this trend continues, we could see a competitive race in Florida,” he said.
On an amendment on reproductive rights that Florida voters will decide on in November, 56% support that no law should prohibit abortion before viability, and the greatest support is among Hispanics, at 66%.
Among Democratic voters, 80% are in favor, compared to 35% of Republicans, while 59% of independents are in favor.
The online poll was conducted August 10-11, with a sample of 1,055 registered Florida voters ages 18 and older.
“While a specific margin of error cannot be assigned due to the online component, a survey of this size typically has a margin of error of +/- 3% with a 95% confidence level,” FAU said.