For months, many political observers have been predicting that President Donald Trump is headed for defeat in his bid for a second term in the White House.
As recent Rasmussen polls have found, however, there is evidence that — as in 2016 — pundits could be in for a big surprise come Election Day.
“First time in a month”
The polling firm released the results of its latest daily presidential tracking survey on Friday, showing a 51% approval rate for Trump.
That figure comes on the heels of another Rasmussen poll showing the incumbent within three points of Democratic nominee Joe Biden among likely voters nationwide.
According to the report, the former vice president “now leads President Trump 49% to 46%,” representing major gains over similar surveys taken in recent weeks.
“Two weeks ago, Biden had a 12-point lead,” the firm noted. “A week ago, he was ahead by eight. This is the first time in a month that Biden’s support has fallen below 50%.”
Furthermore, Rasmussen’s results determined that Trump had the support of 82% of the Republican Party, compared to Biden, who was backed by 79% of Democrats. Biden did, however, have a lead among independent voters.
“12 points higher than Reagan”
While the firm’s findings have been among the most favorable to the president throughout the race, it is not the only evidence of momentum building behind the Trump campaign. An IBD/TIPP poll published on Tuesday showed a tightening race, with Biden’s support at 48.1% and Trump’s at 45.6%.
“Biden’s narrower support reflects Trump’s gain, more third-party support and more voters who are undecided or decline to say whom they support,” IBD stated in its analysis.
In potentially related results from a Gallup survey last month, 56% of respondents said they considered themselves better off than they were four years ago.
Earlier this month, Red State contributor Nick Arama wrote about the significance of those results, explaining that Trump is “higher than the presidents who were incumbents and won in those years — 1984, 1992, 2004 and 2012.”
Not only is he “12 points higher than Reagan who won in a landslide in 1984 and 11 points higher than Obama in 2012 in that number,” Arama noted that the president’s Rasmussen approval rating is two points higher than Obama’s at this point in 2012.
The post Rasmussen polls finds Trump closing gap with Biden first appeared on Conservative Institute.
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