President Donald J. Trump has taken a narrow lead in a New England state that Republicans have been unable to turn red in 24 years, just days ahead of the presidential election. The New Hampshire Journal/Praecones Analytica poll, released Sunday, shows Trump with 50.2 percent of the vote, just ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris, on 49.8 percent.
Although the lead is within the margin of error, it represents Trump’s first polling edge in New Hampshire since a similar survey in July showed him leading Joe Biden by one point before Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race.
Despite Harris leading every other New Hampshire poll as the presumptive Democratic nominee, including one poll showing a significant 21-point margin earlier in October, recent data indicates a tightening race. An Emerson College poll last week showed Harris ahead by just three points.
New Hampshire, considered conservative by northeastern U.S. standards, previously voted against Trump in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. However, Clinton won the state by only a little over 2,000 votes in 2016. The state last supported a Republican in the presidential race in 2000.
With just over a week until the election, President Trump has seen his polling numbers grow in several key swing states. Some project that he could win a landslide with over 300 Electoral College votes, far above the 270 needed to win the presidency.