Once again, it’s all about the economy.
With just over six weeks to go until Election Day on Nov. 5 and early voting and absentee balloting underway in a growing number of states, a slew of public opinion polls agree on a couple of key points.
One – the race in the key battlegrounds that will decide the 2024 White House election between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Trump is within the margin-of-error.
Two – Harris has a healthy advantage among voters when it comes to the issue of abortion, while Trump has an equally large margin in dealing with the border and immigration.
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Vice President Kamala Harris, right, and former President Donald Trump shake hands during their first and potentially only presidential debate, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. Photographer: Doug Mills/The New York Time/Bloomberg via Getty Images (Getty Images)
Three – the economy remains the top issue on the minds of American voters as they prepare to cast their ballot in the presidential election.
“The economy tops voters’ minds,” reads the headline from a new AP/NORC national poll, which was conducted entirely after last week’s first and potentially only debate between the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees.
Nearly eight in ten questioned in the survey said the economy was one of their top issues, far ahead of everything else.
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A Fox News national poll also in the field entirely post-debate spotlighted that 39% of voters surveyed said the economy was their most pressing issue, far ahead of immigration (16%) and abortion (15%). All other issues tested were in single digits.
The economy reigns supreme in pretty much every other survey.
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally at Bojangles Coliseum, in Charlotte, N.C., Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
While the nation’s economic recovery from the pandemic-inflicted recession continues, inflation remains a leading concern among Americans.
“An increasing number say grocery prices and housing costs are tough for their family,” the Fox News poll notes.
When it comes to which presidential candidate can better handle the economy, Trump continues to have the edge – but his margins over Harris differ dramatically depending on the poll.
The former president’s up 13 points over the vice president in a post-debate survey from the New York Times and Siena College, and favored by 7 points in an ABC News Ipsos survey also conducted after the showdown.
But Trump’s advantage over Harris on the economy stands at only 5 points in the Fox News poll, and just 2 points in the AP/NORC survey.
“The issue profile of this election continues to favor Trump,” said Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who conducts the Fox News Poll along with Democrat Chris Anderson.
But Shaw added that Trump’s “edge on economic issues has decreased, probably due to Harris’ messaging on housing costs and taxes, both of which target the middle class and appear to be paying off.”
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Boosting Trump when it comes to the economy are apparent fond memories of his tenure in the White House.
Former President Donald Trump speaks at a rally in Uniondale, New York on Wednesday, September 18, 2024. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital)
Voters questioned in the Fox News poll by a 17 point margin said Trump’s policies on the economy were more helpful than harmful. But by 24 points, they said that President Biden’s economic policies have been more hurtful than helpful.
“The perception that Trump’s policies helped more than Biden’s creates some heavy baggage for Harris in this campaign and shows why ‘turning the page’ is a central theme she’s tried to stress,” Anderson said.
Fox News’ Victoria Balara contributed to this report