Vice President Kamala Harris travels to Michigan on Monday, where new polls indicate Donald Trump could take the state’s decisive role in November.
The EPIC-MRA poll shows that the battle for first place will be extremely close, with the Republican presidential candidate holding a narrow edge in a head-to-head matchup.
The poll gives Trump 47 percent and Harris 46 percent, with seven percent of Michigan voters undecided or declining to say who they support. But there is a 4 percent margin of error, so the presidential candidates are statistically tied.
Both campaigns have shown how important the swing state is with its 15 electoral votes. Biden flipped the state blue in 2020 after Trump won it in 2016.
The vice president is holding a campaign event in Detroit on Monday. The former president held a rally in the state last week.
Michigan poll shows Trump and Harris neck-and-neck in crucial state
On the issues, more respondents said Trump would do a better job of fighting the wars in Ukraine and Gaza, and in fighting China, Iran and North Korea.
They also gave him higher marks for policies to support the economy and even suggested he would be more likely to propose bipartisan legislation to secure the border, even though he earlier this year botched a bipartisan deal on border security that Harris supports.
At the same time, voters in Michigan felt Harris would be better off nominating justices to the U.S. Supreme Court, focusing on climate change, reproductive rights legislation, affordable housing and ensuring access to health care.
The poll found that neither candidate’s choice of running mate played a major role in their support for the candidate.
Sixty-five percent of respondents said Trump’s choice of Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio will have no impact on their vote, while 55 percent said Harris’ choice of Minnesota governor as her running mate will have no impact.
A poll of active and likely voters in Michigan conducted August 23-26
The EPIC-MRA poll shows a near-tie, closely matching several other polls in Michigan in recent weeks as the presidential campaign enters its final stages.
According to the Real Clear Politics average of recent swing state polls, Harris leads Trump by just over one point in Michigan.
An Emerson poll and a separate Bloomberg poll conducted around the same time showed Harris ahead by three points, but those polls were also within the margin of error.
Meanwhile, Democratic Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin has a narrow lead over former Republican Congressman Mike Rogers in the Michigan Senate race.
Both are vying for the seat being vacated by retiring Senator Debbie Stabenow.
According to the EPIC-MRA poll, Slotkin is at 46 percent to Rogers at 42 percent.