Former President Trump is leading President Biden among potential voters in the upcoming presidential election, an Emerson College Polling national survey released Thursday found, with Biden’s polling rate dropping since early April.
Trump leads Biden 46 percent to 43 percent, according to the poll. Support for Biden dropped 2 percentage points since the previous Emerson College poll in early April, while Trump’s polling stayed at 46 percent.
Another 12 percent reported being undecided, according to Thursday’s results. When undecided voters were pressed to pick a candidate, Trump’s support rose to 51 percent, while Biden’s climbed to 48 percent.
When independent candidates were thrown into the mix, support for Trump dropped to 44 percent and 40 percent for Biden. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. received 8 percent of support, another 8 percent reported being undecided, and 1 percent supported Cornel West.
Among issues that voters cited as most critical in forming their opinion of each candidate were the economy and immigration. When asked about specific economic issues, 70 percent said they think the cost of living is rising, and that 70 percent was more likely to support Trump over Biden, the survey found.
“Voters who think the cost of living is rising support Trump over Biden, 56% to 32%,” said Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling. “Those who feel the cost of living is easing or staying the same support Biden over Trump, 94% to 6% and 67% to 18%”
The Israel-Hamas war also came up as a point of contention among the polled voters, with a plurality of voters, 44, percent, saying they feel they’re not getting the full picture when it comes to the war.
“Perceptions of receiving accurate war information show a significant split,” Kimball said. “Biden leads among those who think they are getting accurate information (53% to 36%), while Trump leads among skeptics (53% to 38%). Those unsure are divided, with 44% leaning toward Trump and 42% toward Biden.”
The Emerson College Polling survey was conducted April 16-17 among 1,308 registered voters and has a 2.6 percent margin of error.