Trump Leading in 3 battleground Sun Belt states, New Poll shows

A recent New York Times and Siena College poll shows that former President Donald Trump is leading Vice President Kamala Harris in 3 key battleground states: Arizona, North Carolina, and Georgia.

The poll, which was released on Monday and conducted between September 17 and 21, included responses from 713 voters in Arizona, 682 in Georgia, and 682 in North Carolina. The margin of error for each state ranges from four to five percentage points.

In all three states, voters voiced their concerns about the economy, abortion, immigration, and the overall direction of the country. Most respondents had an unfavourable view of both candidates, with 50% viewing Trump and 51% viewing Harris as somewhat or very unfavourable.

Trump and Harris duel over what it means to be a man in America (Trump Leading in 3 battleground)

It might have seemed like a curious pairing. There was former President Donald Trump inside his Mar-a-Lago home. Next to him was a 23-year-old internet celebrity known for livestreaming video games.

“We’re going to get some good ratings today,” the 78-year-old Trump said to the host, Adin Ross, at the top of a 77-minute friendly live-streamed interview last month viewed 2.6 million times on YouTube.

Yet this was hardly a detour from the 2024 campaign trail for the Republican nominee. The young, largely male audience Ross attracts – particularly people not usually tuned in to politics – made his livestream an ideal forum for Trump.

As he works to overcome Democratic nominee Kamala Harris’ advantage with female voters, Trump has aggressively courted young male voters by leaning into a version of his brand of masculinity. Trump, who has long presented himself as a leader who exudes strength, has doubled down on that image this election to attract a long-overlooked voting bloc.

Some call it “the bro vote.”

To win in November, the Trump campaign has identified undecided male voters under 50 that makeup about 11% of the electorate across the top battleground states, according to a campaign analysis first reported by The Washington Post. Although the group is mostly white, Trump also is trying to reach young Black, Latino and Asian American voters.

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On the other side, the Harris campaign has embraced a different version of masculinity to make its appeal to young male voters who have increasingly voted Republican.

Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, talks about his time as a high school football coach and his service in the National Guard and casts himself as the everyday loving dad. Meanwhile, Harris’ husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, has sought to show a different idea of manliness: supporting your wife even if it means halting your professional career.

“Gender is everywhere in this election, but masculinity is front and centre in a way that’s perhaps unprecedented,” said Jackson Katz, a scholar on gender and masculinity who this month released a new film, “The Man Card: 50 Years of Gender, Power and the American Presidency.”

“Gender is always a central factor in American presidential politics, but it’s hiding in plain sight until a woman runs. When a woman runs, her gender makes visible what’s been there all along.”

Last week of likely voters in Pennsylvania – one of the top battleground states that could decide the election – found Harris leading with female voters 56%-39% and Trump on top with male voters 53%-41%. Harris’ 17-point advantage among women, compared with Trump’s 12-point lead with men, helps explain Harris’ 49%-46% lead in the state in the poll.

Among young voters, the gap is even wider. A nationwide USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll this month found Harris leading female voters ages 18 to 34 years old 63%-27% and Trump leading male voters in the same age bracket 45%-37%.