NEW: National WSJ Poll Shows Massive Shift Since August

Former President Donald Trump has built a slim lead over Vide President Kamala Harris in the 2024 race, according to a new Wall Street Journal poll. The shift reflects a favorable view of Trump’s policies and previous tenure, juxtaposed with increasing skepticism toward Harris. The poll indicates Trump leads Harris by a narrow margin of 47% to 45%, a reversal from Harris’s 2-point advantage in August. Given that both leads fall within the poll’s margin of error, the actual leader remains uncertain.

Harris’s approval ratings have declined, while Trump’s ratings have improved, the survey reveals. Back in August, Harris enjoyed a 50% favorability rate among voters, which has since decreased to 45%. Now, 53% of voters hold an unfavorable view of her. Harris is experiencing her lowest job performance ratings since the Wall Street Journal began tracking this metric, with 54% disapproving and only 42% approving of her performance as vice president.

According to the poll, voters have more trust in Donald Trump than Kamala Harris on key issues like the economy and immigration. Trump’s lead over Harris on economic matters has widened to 12 points from 8 points in August. On the issue of immigration, his advantage has more than doubled, jumping from a 7-point lead in August to a 15-point lead now.

“Voters are finally getting to know her,” Republican pollster David Lee said to the WSJ, who conducted the poll. “The definitional period is coming to an end, and more people are unhappy with what they have learned about her than what they know about President Trump.”

On Thursday, Harris will be campaigning in Georgia alongside former President Barack Obama and musician Bruce Springsteen. Meanwhile, Donald Trump will be on the campaign trail in the West, starting with a rally in Tempe, Arizona, before moving on to another rally in Las Vegas, Nevada. Both campaigns are strategically targeting these states, with Republicans aiming to flip them. Recent state polls indicate tight presidential races in Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania.

During last night’s CNN town hall in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, Harris was confronted over her previous support for decriminalizing illegal immigration and providing free healthcare to illegal aliens, contrasting sharply with her current advocacy for increased border security and a border wall.

When asked whether she wanted to now build the border wall, Harris said, “I want to secure our border.”

Elsewhere in the town hall, Anderson Cooper bluntly asked how she could be running as a “change” candidate despite the fact that she has been in office for nearly four years.

“I bring a whole set of different experiences to this job and the way I think about it than Joe Biden,” Harris declared. “Some voters, though, might ask, you’ve been in the White House for four years. You were vice president, not the president. But why wasn’t any of that done for the last four years?” Cooper followed up. Harris replied with a vague, rambling answer in which she failed to answer the question.

“Well, there was a lot that was done, but there’s more to do, Anderson. And I’m pointing out things that need to be done that haven’t been done, but need to be done,” she said. “And I’m not gonna shy away from saying, ‘Hey, these are still problems that we need to fix.”

At one point, a Pennsylvania voter asked the vice president about what her weaknesses are and how she goes about managing them as a leader. The vice president replied with an answer that could have been given by Michael Scott from “The Office.”

“Well, I am certainly not perfect. So let’s start there,” Harris said with a brief giggle.

“And I think that I perhaps a weakness some would say, but I actually think it’s a strength, is I really do value having a team of very smart people around me who bring to my decision-making process, different perspectives,” she continued. “My team will tell you I am constantly saying, let’s kick the tire on that. Let’s kick the tires on it.”

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