Harris closing Trump enthusiasm gap: Poll

Vice President Kamala Harris is cutting into the enthusiasm advantage former President Donald Trump had over President Joe Biden, particularly among black voters, according to a new CBS-YouGov poll.

The poll found that Harris and Trump are statistically tied nationally and across the collective battleground states, with Harris having a 1-point edge nationally, which expands to 2 points when third parties are included.

Trump had a 5-point national head-to-head lead on Biden in the CBS and YouGov poll that was conducted before the president announced two weeks ago he would no longer seek reelection and endorsed Harris in his place. The battlegrounds surveyed included Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.

But it is the number of black registered voters who told pollsters they will now “definitely vote” in November that could help Harris in cities such as Detroit, Philadelphia, and Milwaukee, the population centers of the blue wall battleground states of Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, as well as in the Sunbelt state of Georgia.

The poll, conducted from July 30-Aug. 2, found 85% of Democratic registered voters told pollsters they will “definitely vote,” compared to 81% who said the same in an earlier survey published on July 18. Among their Republican counterparts, 88% told pollsters they will “definitely vote,” in contrast to 90% who said the same on July 18. In addition, 74% of black registered voters told pollsters last week they will “definitely vote” when 58% said the same last month, a 16-point improvement.

The poll also found Harris was ahead of Trump with women – 70% told pollsters Harris’s policies would “help women,” as opposed to 43% who said the same of Trump’s policies.

Yet Trump remained dominant on issues regarding the economy and immigration. For example, 25% told pollsters they would be “financially better off” if Harris wins, 45% said the same if Trump wins. When asked under whom they would be “financially worse off,” 44% said Harris and 38% said Trump. Thirty-one percent said they would “stay about the same” under Harris and 17% said the same about Trump.

The CBS/YouGov’s top-line number between Harris and Trump is similar to averages from polling aggregators. For instance, Harris has an average 1.2 point national head-to-head lead, according to RealClearPolitics.

The poll surveyed 3,102 registered voters nationwide for a margin of error of plus or minus 2.1 points.