Kamala Harris Takes 7-Point Lead Over Donald Trump in New Poll

Vice President Kamala Harris has a 7-point lead over Former President Donald Trump, according to a new poll.
The Big Village poll, conducted between August 23 and 28, has given the Democratic nominee her biggest lead over Trump since she entered the race in July after President Joe Biden dropped out.
The poll found that Harris has 50.4 percent support, compared with Trump’s 43.4 percent, among likely voters. Among registered voters, she is leading by 6 points, 48.4 percent to 42.4 percent.
The Big Village poll surveyed 2,020 adults, 1,681 registered voters and 1,511 likely voters. The margin of error was plus or minus 2 percent among all adults and among registered voters and plus or minus 3 percent among likely voters.
Harris’ lead has ranged from between 2 and 5 points in most recent polls, but a survey by Kaplan Strategies had her leading by 6 points. That survey was conducted between August 23 and 24, after Harris delivered her speech accepting her historic nomination at the Democratic National Convention.
She is ahead of Trump by 3.6 points as of Wednesday, according to FiveThirtyEight’s polling average.
The polls are “reflecting the momentum in support and enthusiasm” for Harris’ candidacy but also reflect “the uptick that tends to follow national nominating conventions,” Costas Panagopoulos, a political science professor at Northeastern University, told Newsweek.
“Still, the trajectory in recent polls is mostly pointing in one direction, which could spell trouble for the Trump campaign,” he said.
“Republicans seem to be having a tough time to define Harris in unfavorable terms. Their messaging is unfocused and inconsistent and appears to be falling flat,” Panagopoulos continued.
“Meanwhile, Harris seems to be cutting into Trump’s support among key subgroups of Americans, including nonwhite, young and independent voters. One has the impression that many voters were just waiting for a viable alternative to Trump, and now that they have that, they’re on board,” he said.
The challenge for Harris, Panagopoulos said, is “to keep the momentum going, especially as crucial campaign moments—like face-to-face debates—lie ahead and to avoid damaging pitfalls.”
Thomas Gift, an associate professor of political science and director of the Center on U.S. Politics at University College London, said there’s “no doubt” that Harris has momentum in the race.
“However, if there is a concern from the Harris camp, it’s that polls may be statistically undercounting Trump voters,” he told Newsweek.
“We know that, from 2016 and 2020, there’s a certain percentage of ‘shy’ Trump voters who may not be willing to admit they’ll vote for Trump but will do so in the privacy of the ballot box,” he said.