The presidential debate held last week did little to alter the equation between Republican candidate Donald Trump and his Democratic rival Kamala Harris, new poll results published on Sunday showed.
The Head-to-Head Tally: Harris received 51% support among registered voters compared to 47% support for Trump, the poll conducted by ABC News, who hosted the debate, along with Ipsos showed. The former’s slight lead is statistically unchanged from the previous ABC/Ipsos poll conducted before the debate.
The survey was conducted between Sept. 11-13 and 3,276 adults were surveyed for the purpose.
Among likely voters, the tally was 52%-46% in favor of Harris, unchanged from the numbers seen before the debate.
The share of Harris supporters who strongly backed her was 62%, while Trump supporters who strongly backed him was at 56%, down from 60% at the end of August.
The survey found that Taylor Swift’s endorsement had little impact. Merely 6% said the popular singer-songwriter’s endorsement of Harris makes them more likely to vote for her. While 13% said it makes them less likely to support her, 81% saying it makes no difference.
Debate Performance: Harris won hands down, according to the respondents, with 58% picking her as the winner and 36% opining that Trump won. Thirty-seven of the respondents said the debate made them think more favorably about the vice president, more than double that of the 17% who felt the same about Trump. Thirty percent of the respondents said the debate made them feel less favorably about the former president.
The benefit for Harris came from her voter base, as 60% of the Democratic and Democratic-leaning independent voters said the debate made them feel more favorably toward her. On the other hand, only 34% of the Republican and Republican-leaning independent voters said the debate made them see Trump more favorably.
“The absence of movement in vote preferences, despite a 22-point tilt to Harris as having won the debate, marks the sharply polarized nature of the electorate,” the pollster said. “Almost everyone has a preference between Harris or Trump, and among those who do, few say they’d even consider the other,” it added.
Among demographics, Harris led Trump among women, while among men, both were neck-on-neck. She had a 13-point lead over Trump among registered voters in the 18-29 years age category and a stronger 19-point lead among likely voters. The vice president’s good showing in this category is primarily attributable to strong support among women in this age group.
Harris had a thumping 81% support among Black registered voters and 89% support among likely voters in this racial group. She also led among Hispanic voters, with 7% support, while among white registered voters, she trailed by a 43%-54% margin.
Voter Issues: The economy and inflation continue to dominate as the top issues in the election, and Trump led Harris by seven points in voter trust in his ability to handle both. He had a 10-point lead over Harris in voter trust to handle immigration.
On the other hand, Harris had a seven-point lead on “protecting American democracy” and a 9-point lead on handling health care. The two remain evenly matched on crime and safety.
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