World
This move comes after Biden’s shocker to pull out of the presidential race, a decision that was triggered by his poor showing during the first presidential debate
Updated : Aug 19, 2024, 10:35 AM IST
A new Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll reveals that Joe Biden has a slim lead over Donald Trump in the forthcoming presidential election. Harris gets 49% approval against Trump’s 45%, which is quite an improvement for Democrats as they move to their national convention tonight where Harris will be formally nominated as the Democratic candidate. This four-point lead is quite significant especially given that polls conducted a month ago had Biden and the then presidential nominee Trump at par.
The current survey also reveals that in case third party candidates are included, Harris leads the race with 47% while Trump is closely behind with 44% and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. with 5%. In July this lead was with former President Donald Trump at 43% and Joe Biden at 42%. This move comes after Biden’s shocker to pull out of the presidential race, a decision that was triggered by his poor showing during the first presidential debate, which made the Democrats’ top officials and donors question his chances of clinching the White House.
The poor performance by Biden during the debate led to several party members demanding for him to drop out of the race. Despite that, he only relented to the pressure on the 21st of July to support Harris for the nomination of the democratic party. This endorsement can be considered a turning point for the Democrats as they gather behind Harris in a bid to keep up the pace to the election. As the Democrats get ready for their national convention starting tonight, it will be building on the base, especially the swing states, which are critical for the party’s electoral fortunes. Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, and Nevada are likely to be the battleground states in the election.
The increase in points that Harris received in these swing zones suggest that she has been able to secure the votes of the people after Biden’s exit. This next convention is expected to have keynote speeches and endorsements from key Democratic leaders such as the former president Barack Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the candidate Joe Biden. Such endorsements are expected to give a boost to Harris’s campaign as she gets ready to take on Trump in the forthcoming debates.