by Rebeka Zeljko
Former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden are tied in Virginia at 42%, according to a new Roanoke College Poll about November’s election.
The poll found for the first time that the candidates were tied, despite the fact that Virginia has not voted for a Republican presidential candidate since former President George W. Bush in 2004.Trump lost Virginia in 2016 and 2020, with Biden winning in 2020 and former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton winning in 2016.
When other candidates are included, Biden is leading at 40% with Trump trailing at 38%, according to the same poll. In a five-way race, 20% say they will vote for a candidate other than Biden or Trump. Of the remaining candidates, 8% said they will vote for independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., 3% said they will vote for Green Party candidate Jill Stein, 1% said they would vote for independent candidate Cornel West, and 8% said they would vote for another candidate.
Some folks dragged me May 7 for posting a Trump camp McLaughlin poll, which indicated Biden led Trump by just 1 in Virginia.
Well, here’s an independent Roanoke poll showing a tie race in the statehttps://t.co/ghJLQBV5Hu https://t.co/ntbCNa6EOM pic.twitter.com/MAyY5sYcLR
— Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) May 29, 2024
Polling has showed that 43% of Virginia adults identify as Republican while 39% of adults identify as Democrat and 18% of adults identify as independent, according to a Pew Research Poll. Of the 11 congressional seats allotted to Virginia, six of them belong to Democrats and five are held by Republicans. The state’s Senate delegation are both Democrats as well.
In Virginia, 44% of those surveyed said the top issue is the economy, and 14% said the top issue is immigration, according to the same poll. With respect to favorability, Trump and Biden are tied at 36% favorability across those surveyed. Meanwhile, 57% of respondents view Trump unfavorably and 58% said the same about Biden.
Biden’s economic approval rating dropped in 2022 from 57% to 40% due to inflation, and has since steadily polled below 40%, according to Gallup findings. Biden also saw a new low with a 28% approval rate on immigration policy, according to Gallup. Among single issue voters, 19% say they disapprove of Biden because of his immigration policy.
Trump’s economic approval peaked at 63% in January 2020, and was lowest at 45% in November and June of 2017. Polling also shows 52% of respondents saying Trump was stronger on immigration, while only 25% say Biden was better on the issue, according to recent findings from a Marquette University Law School poll.
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Rebeka Zeljko is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation.
Photo “Joe Biden” by President Joe Biden.
