Poll: Trump tightens race in Colo., Va.

by Ben Kamisar - 09/22/16 3:43 PM ET

Hillary Clinton’s leads are shrinking in the battleground states of Colorado and Virginia, according to a new poll from Quinnipiac University that also shows Donald Trump up in Georgia and Iowa.

The findings reflect a tightening in the presidential race across the country, as Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, continues to make up ground in swing states ahead of next week’s presidential debate.

{mosads}”Iowa, Virginia and Colorado are a metaphor for what is happening in the presidential race,” Peter Brown, the Quinnipiac poll assistant director, said in a statement.

“When Quinnipiac University polled last in those states on August 17, Secretary Hillary Clinton was riding the post-convention wave that gave her double-digit leads in many polls. Now, the race has tightened considerably and tat new reality is reflected by these numbers.”

Clinton’s lead in Colorado is 2 points, 44 percent to 42 percent. It’s buoyed by stronger success with members of her own party. The poll found 93 percent of Democrats in the state back Clinton, while only 84 percent of Republicans support Trump.

In Virginia, Clinton’s lead is 45 percent to 39 percent. And Trump leads Georgia 47 percent to 40 percent and Iowa 44 percent to 37 percent.

Clinton, the Democratic nominee, leads Trump by 2 points in Colorado and 6 points in Virginia, while Trump is up 7 points in both Georgia and Iowa.

Brown chalks up Trump’s success in Iowa in part to the “overwhelmingly white” demographic that “lacks the kind of large minority population that has fueled Hillary Clinton’s lead in some of the large industrial states” in the Midwest.

Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson posted similar support in all four states — 8 percent in Virginia, 9 percent in Georgia and 10 percent in both Colorado and Iowa.

Quinnipiac polled voters Sept. 13–21. The Colorado poll was of 644 likely voters and had a margin of error of 3.9 points. The Georgia poll was of 638 likely voters and had a margin of error of 3.9 points. The Iowa poll was of 612 likely voters and had a margin of error of 4 points. And the Virginia poll was of 659 likely voters and had a margin of error of 3.8 points.

Tags Colorado Donald Trump Gary Johnson Georgia Hillary Clinton Iowa Virginia