With six months to go until Election Day 2024, the rematch between President Biden and former President Trump is as close as it can get.
The race is tied, according to a new national poll released by USA Today and Suffolk University on Monday.
Biden and Trump each stand at 37% support among registered voters, with Democrat turned independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at 8%, and 5% backing other independent or third party candidates.
HAS BIDEN FLATLINED IN THE LATEST POLLS?
A Quinnipiac University poll released in April shows President Biden’s slight lead over former President Trump, right, vanishing. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon / Curtis Means/DailyMail.com via AP, Pool)
“We’re basically at the doorstep of the election, and the outcome is a coin flip,” Suffolk University Political Research Center director David Paleologos said.
The survey is the second in a day to indicate an extremely close contest between the Democratic incumbent in the White House and his Republican predecessor.
CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLLING IN THE 2024 ELECTION
According to an ABC News/Ipsos poll released Sunday, Trump held a 46%-44% advantage among adults, but Biden has the edge 46%-45% among registered voters and up 49%-45% among those likely to vote in the presidential election.
Republican presidential candidate former President Trump speaks on Tuesday, April 2, 2024, at a rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (AP Photo/Mike Roemer)
In a five-way contest that includes Biden, Trump, Kennedy, Green Party candidate Jill Stein and independent Cornel West, Trump has the slight edge among all adults, he is tied with the president among registered voters, and Biden holds the edge among likely voters.
DO THE LATEST POLLS SPELL TROUBLE FOR BIDEN?
The Suffolk poll suggests that nearly a quarter of voters (24%) say they might change their minds ahead of the fall election, with 12% saying they have not made their choice yet in the presidential race.
President Biden speaks at the Washoe Democratic Party Office in Reno, Nevada, on Tuesday, March 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
“When we think about the race tied with just 26 weeks to go, we have to consider that people tune out politics and the party conventions in July and August,” Paleologos emphasized. “That leaves just 17 weeks for candidates to actively campaign, and it’s actually 13 or 14 weeks when you consider states where early voting starts weeks before Election Day.”
While national surveys garner plenty of attention, the race for the White House is a battle for the states and their electoral votes, which places a spotlight on battleground state polling.
The most recent polling in the key swing states, including surveys from Fox News, indicate close contests.
Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in New Hampshire.