(NewsNation Now) — In our new NewsNation/Emerson College national poll of likely voters, former Vice President Joe Biden holds a slight lead over President Trump.
Forty-eight percent of likely voters polled plan to vote for Biden; 44% polled plan to vote for Trump. Of those still undecided, when forced to choose, 54% pick Trump while 46% opt for Biden.
The margin of error is +/- 3 percentage points, so the race is close, based on the poll.
When we asked how satisfied they are with the choice of presidential candidates they have, 86% of Republicans said they are satisfied. Among Democrats, that number was 63%.
And on the issues, the poll offers some interesting results.
Coronavirus
On the pandemic front, 77% of Democrats polled believe the country is handling the coronavirus worse than other nations around the world. Only 20% of Republicans polled share that view. Fifty-six percent of Republicans think the U.S. is doing better than other countries.
Sixty-seven percent of Democrats see the coronavirus as a major threat; just 35% of Republicans feel the same way. Only 4% of Democrats see the virus as a minor threat or no threat at all, while 32% of Republicans polled hold that view.
Supreme Court
On the Supreme Court, our poll found 38% believe it leans to the right, 25% to the left, and 24% are unsure. But just 13% believe the court acts in a non-partisan way.
And on that point, 62% of likely voters polled said they agree with the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision regarding a woman’s right to an abortion. Twenty-two percent disagreed.
Voting by mail
Forty-five percent of Democrats polled said they plan to vote by mail, compared to 51% of Republicans who said they plan to vote in person.
Watching the debate
While the president campaigned in two states Thursday, Biden was at home preparing for the debate next Tuesday. Our poll says 71% of likely voters plan to watch it.
How the NewsNation/Emerson poll was conducted
The September National Emerson College/NewsNation poll was conducted Sept. 22-23. The sample consisted of likely Democratic, Republican, and Independent voters, n-=1000, with a credibility interval similar to the poll’s margin of error (MOE) of +/- 3 percentage points. Data was collected using an interactive voice response system of landlines (n=292), SMS-to-web texting (n=244) and an online panel provided by MTurk(n=464).
The perception of political polling took a hit after polls in 2016 overestimated support for Hillary Clinton. As a result, much of the country was surprised when Donald Trump won the election.
