A Monday poll found former President Donald Trump holds a 5-point lead over President Joe Biden in Georgia ahead of the Thursday presidential debate in Atlanta, which will mark the first time the presidents have shared a stage since their final debate prior to the 2020 election.
The poll found that Trump had the support of 43 percent of Peach State voters, giving him a 5-percent lead over Biden, who had 38 percent of support.
Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy received an additional 9 percent of support, while 8 percent remained undecided.
One percent of voters each said they would not vote for any of the options or would vote for Libertarian Party nominee Chase Oliver.
The poll of 1,000 likely Georgia voters was commissioned by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) and conducted by the University of Georgia between June 11-22.
According to the outlet, the data “reflects Biden’s struggles refashioning the coalition of young liberals, Black voters and swing suburbanites that propelled his narrow win four years ago.” Biden was determined the winner in Georgia by less than 12,000 votes in 2020.
The pollsters found Biden’s support “cratered” among young voters, with the Democrat only receiving the support of 12 percent of Georgia voters between ages 18 and 29.
Despite the Biden campaign’s recent outreach campaign to black voters, the pollsters additionally found that Biden has the support of 70 percent of the community that propelled him to the White House in 2020. According to AJC, Biden had the support of 88 percent of Georgia’s black voters in the last election.
Additionally, the poll may indicate that Trump’s recent conviction in New York energized supporters behind him, as the outlet noted 17 percent said the convictions “make them more likely to vote for Trump.”
Pollsters said that about 25 percent of respondents said that Trump’s convictions made them less likely to vote for the former president, while 56 percent said that it made no difference.
The outlet noted that the Thursday debate could sway the opinions of Georgia voters. While Trump allies have noted that the debate will be hosted by Trump critics Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, aides to Biden have reportedly complained that the cable news network does not plan to provide live fact-checking.
The Georgia voters continue to lean toward the former president as national polls show Americans are motivated by concerns about immigration and the economy.
National polling from Gallup shows Americans have consistently ranked immigration as one of their top issues every month since November 2023, as at least 10 million illegal immigrants have entered the United States since Biden took office.
About 20 percent of Americans also regularly cite the economy as a major factor when determining their vote, with food costs listed as a primary concern. Another recent poll found nearly half of Americans reported “struggling to remain where they are financially” under Biden’s watch.
The Monmouth pollsters who published this finding noted, “In polls conducted between 2022 and 2023, this number ranged between 37% and 44%,” while in polls taken during the Trump administration, “this sentiment was much lower at 20% to 29%.”
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Joe Biden” by President Joe Biden. Photo “Robert F Kennedy Jr. “ by Robert F Kennedy Jr.
