Kamala is gaining in polls

Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are in a neck-and-neck contest nearly 100 days before the election, with the latest poll showing Harris gaining five points on Trump compared to President Joe Biden’s standing in the wake of his consequential June 27 debate against Trump. KEY FACTS A poll of 1,142 voters conducted July 22-24 shows Trump up by one point, 48% to 47%, among likely voters and up two points, 48% to 46%, among registered voters—the latest survey showing Harris making a dent in Trump’s lead over Biden, who trailed Trump by six points in the groups’ early July survey. Harris and Trump are tied at 42% among registered voters in a six-way matchup with third-party candidates, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (6%) on the ballot, according to the Times/Siena survey. Democrats are far more enthusiastic about Harris than they were Biden, the Times/Siena survey found, with nearly 80% of voters who lean Democrat saying they would like Harris to be the nominee, compared to 48% of Democrats who said the same about Biden three weeks ago. Two polls taken since Biden dropped out show Harris leading: Morning Consult’s weekly , conducted July 22-24 among 11,297 registered voters, shows her with 46% support, compared to Trump’s 45%, while she is up 44% to 42% over Trump in a conducted Monday and Tuesday. Four other polls show Trump winning: he leads Harris by three points, 49% to 46%, in an online CNN/SSRS taken July 22-23; by two points, 47% to 45%, in another poll; by one point, 46% to 45%, in a NPR/PBS/Marist ; and by three points, 44% to 41%, in an conducted Sunday-Tuesday that also found Kennedy with 5% support. Polls consistently show Harris outperforms Biden—Ipsos and Reuters’ previous poll taken July 15-16 found Harris and Trump tied at 44%, while a July 1-2 poll found Trump led by one point—though it’s unclear how polls taken when Harris was still only a hypothetical candidate will differ from those taken after she became the likely nominee. The CNN/SSRS survey and Morning Consult polls also found Harris performs better than Biden against Trump—Biden trailed Trump by six points in Morning Consult surveys taken before he exited the race and by six points in CNN/SSRS surveys taken in April and June. In a stark contrast with sentiment surrounding Biden’s mental fitness, 56% of voters polled by Reuters/Ipsos said Harris was “mentally sharp and able to deal with challenges,” compared to 49% who said the same about Trump and 22% for Biden.