Kamala Harris within ‘striking distance’ of Donald Trump in his home state, shocking poll shows

A new poll of likely voters shows Vice President Kamala Harris closing the gap with former President Donald Trump in his home state of Florida.

A USA TODAY/Suffolk University/WSVN-TV poll found the former president receiving 47 percent of the vote, while the Democratic presidential candidate received 42 percent of the vote in the Sunshine State.

But the poll has a margin of error of 4.4 percent, meaning Harris has all but clinched the Republican presidential nomination with less than three months to go until Election Day.

The new poll is the narrowest gap between the former president and Harris in the state since she took the lead on the Democratic presidential ticket after President Biden withdrew from the race in July.

A new poll out of Florida shows Kamala Harris narrowing the gap with President Donald Trump in his home state

Florida was once considered the most popular presidential election state in the country, but recent elections have turned the state red.

The last Democrat to win the state in a presidential election was former President Obama in 2012. Trump won the state in 2016 and in 2020, when he defeated President Biden by more than three points despite losing the election.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis defeated his Democratic opponent in the 2022 gubernatorial race by 19 points. What’s more, Republicans in Florida have a big advantage when it comes to registered voters, with more than a million more voters than Democrats ahead of the November election.

While the GOP still holds a significant advantage in the state, Harris is closing the gap, thanks in part to a huge surge in enthusiasm since she took over.

A USA TODAY/Suffolk University/WSVN-TV poll of potential voters in Florida found that Harris is just as enthusiastic about their party’s nominee as Trump is, with 89 percent of each group saying they are very or somewhat enthusiastic about voting for their candidate this fall.

For Democrats, that’s a huge change from when Biden topped the ticket. In June, just 60 percent of supporters nationwide were enthusiastic about voting for the incumbent president.

The vice president also has an edge over Biden when it comes to popularity in the state, with 44 percent of voters saying they have a positive view of her, compared to just 39 percent of Biden.

However, Harris still trails Trump in popularity in the state, where 50 percent of voters view him favorably.

Even before Biden dropped out of the race, his campaign argued that Florida was in play for the president, particularly because abortion rights were at the forefront in the state with the six-week ban on abortion that went into effect earlier this year and a referendum on it.

Although Harris traveled to the state as vice president, she has yet to visit as the Democratic presidential candidate, instead campaigning in states where the election is crucial.

In May, Harris visited Florida to highlight the state’s six-week abortion ban. Her campaign continues to make abortion access a major issue on the campaign trail, which could help Democrats, as it has been a heated issue in recent elections.

However, abortion rights did not have the same impact on Florida’s 2022 midterm elections as they did elsewhere, such as Michigan and Pennsylvania, after Roe v. Wade was overturned.

Meanwhile, Trump has held multiple campaign events, including rallies in Florida, as he campaigns for a second term in the White House.