Former President Trump holds a narrow lead over Vice President Kamala Harris among early voters in battleground states. This is an encouraging sign for the Republican Party in what’s shaping up to be a highly competitive presidential race.
According to a report from The Hill, a Harvard CAPS/Harris poll reveals that 48% of voters planning to cast their ballots early in critical swing states have chosen Trump, with 47% siding with Harris. An additional 5% either selected another candidate or have yet to vote.
Mark Penn, co-director of the poll, says that Trump’s “swing state strategy is paying off." It sure sounds like it.
Many on the right have been hesitant to fully embrace early voting, but the reality is that Democrats, with their aggressive push to bank early votes, often begin Election Day with a significant head start.
In response, the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee (RNC) launched the “Swamp the Vote” initiative earlier this year. This program is designed to energize swing-state voters and encourage the use of mail-in, absentee, and early voting methods, aiming to level the playing field in these crucial states.
More from The Hill:
Among all voters in the key swing states, Trump was up 2 points, with 48 percent support to Harris’s 46 percent, the survey shows.
Harris, though, surges to a strong 8-point lead among early voters nationwide, with 51 percent support to Trump’s 43 percent. Across the board, 45 percent of voters reported they’d be voting early, compared to 50 percent who plan to cast their ballots on Election Day.
A small handful of battleground states will be key to deciding who wins the Oval Office this fall as Harris and Trump enter the homestretch of a razor-tight race, with less than a month until Election Day.
Polling has shown the White House rivals locked in narrow races in Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona, Pennsylvania and elsewhere as they blitz the swing states with rallies and campaign stops.
Nationally, an aggregate of polling compiled by The Hill/Decision Desk HQ shows the vice president leading her GOP rival by 3 points, with roughly 50 percent support to Trump’s 47 percent. The new Harvard CAPS/Harris poll finds the race even closer, with Harris up just a point over the former president among registered voters overall.
An eight-point lead among early voters for Kamala Harris nationally still seems like she's underperforming.
Recommended: James Carville Loses It in Unhinged Anti-Trump Tirade
There have been signs for a while now that Democrats' early-voting advantage is dwindling.
"Vote-by-mail data in three key states shows the edge Democrats enjoyed in 2020 has plummeted, something one expert said is a great sign for Republicans and former President Donald Trump," Fox News reported last month. According to an analysis from DecisionDesk HQ, the Democrats' edge in vote-by-mail requests has shrunk significantly.
Sure, I hate early voting and long for a time when Election Day is no longer Election Month. But to get into a position to make that happen, we have to play by the same rules Democrats do so we can win.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member