Poll shows tight general election battle between Trump and top Democrats
President Trump is running neck-and-neck with the top 2020 Democrats angling to challenge him, setting up a tight race in November, according to a survey released Thursday evening.
The Emerson College poll shows Trump within the margin of error in hypothetical head-to-head match-ups against Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), former Vice President Joe Biden and former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg (D).
Sanders is the only 2020 Democrat with a slight edge over Trump in the survey, leading him 51 percent to 49 percent among registered voters. Both Biden and Warren are locked in 50-50 ties with the president, while Buttigieg trails Trump by a 51 to 49 percent margin. The poll’s margin of error is 2.8 percentage points.
The latest survey shows only nominal differences from the same poll in December, which had Biden and Sanders leading Trump 52 percent to 48 percent, Warren leading 51 to 49 percent and Buttigieg and the president tied at 50-50.
Trump’s approval rating is essentially running even, with 47 percent of registered voters saying they approve of the job he’s doing and 48 percent saying they disapprove. However, the president is slightly underwater with independents, with 44 percent approving of his performance and 49 percent disapproving.
Thirty-six percent of voters said the most important issue they consider when deciding who to vote for is the economy, followed by health care at 16 percent and social issues at 13 percent. Only 8 percent said impeachment was the most important issue for them.
The Emerson College poll surveyed 1,128 registered voters from Jan. 21 to 23.
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