A new poll shows Kamala Harris leading Donald Trump in an extremely tight race in North Carolina as both candidates tour the state this week.
It appears to be the first poll to give the vice president a slim lead in the state the former Republican president won in 2016 and 2020.
The Cook Political Report poll showed the candidates in a statistical tie with Harris at 48 percent and Trump at 47 percent among likely voters in the Tar Heel State with less than three months to go before the election.
Other recent polls in North Carolina showed Trump leading in the state, but multiple surveys now show Harris making gains in battleground states since she took over as the top contender on the Democratic presidential ticket with President Biden’s departure on July 21.
Survey conducted by BSG and GS Strategy Group from July 26 to August 2
Every poll conducted in the key state before Biden dropped out of the race showed Trump leading. The Real Clear Politics average showed Trump leading Biden by more than five points in North Carolina.
The new North Carolina poll comes after Trump visited the key state on Wednesday with a rally in Asheville. His speech was announced to focus on the economy.
Former President Donald Trump at a campaign event in Asheville, North Carolina, on August 14, 2024
Trump supporters attended Trump’s event in Asheville on August 14, where he was scheduled to speak about the economy.
Harris will visit the state for the first time as a Democratic presidential candidate on Friday, where she will give her first economic policy speech in Raleigh.
He had initially planned to hold a rally there with his running mate Tim Walz a week ago, but the event had to be canceled due to weather.
The poll found that when it came to issues, North Carolina voters were most likely to trust Harris when it came to addressing health care, abortion, protecting democracy and protecting Social Security and Medicare.
North Carolina voters were more likely to trust Trump when it came to dealing with the economy, inflation, crime and foreign policy.
Kamala Harris in North Carolina on July 11 before President Biden dropped out of the race. She is scheduled to return to the state to deliver a speech on economic policy on Friday.
Democrats have not won North Carolina in a presidential race since President Obama won the state in 2008 but narrowly lost it to Mitt Romney in 2012.
North Carolina, however, is known for having a mixed ticket. It currently has Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who won in 2016 and 2020, even as Trump won at the top of the ticket.
In 2020, President Biden lost North Carolina to Trump by less than 1.5 points or just under 75,000 votes, even though he won the presidency.
But Democrats see the state as a potential rebound opportunity in 2024 and have been investing both staff and advertising spending there.
Despite this week’s close poll results, Cook Political Report rates North Carolina, with its sixteen electoral votes, as “leaning Republican.”
The Cook Political Report poll also showed Harris leading in the battleground states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Trump was ahead in Nevada. The race was tied 48-48 in Georgia.