The Anatomy of a Swing State – The Biden vs. Trump Rematch – April 24th
Bottom Line: With both major party nominations for President wrapped up and an apparent 2020 presidential rematch ahead of us it’s time for the sixth installment the Anatomy of a Swing State series. In this series I analyze traditional swing states which will likely prove pivotal in determining the presidential outcome in November. This cycle we’ll have a rematch for the first time since 1956 and the seventh time overall. History has generally proved favorable for the challenger in presidential rematches. The loser in the first election matchup has won the rematch on four occasions with incumbent president winning out just twice. Due to the rematch, let’s first start with an overview of where the candidates stand today compared to Election Day 2020 using the RealClear Politics polling average nationally.
- Election Day 2020: Biden +7.2%
- April 23th, 2024: Trump +0.3%
What we currently see is an 7.5% shift to the advantage of Donald Trump. This type of swing in the electorate would clearly have a profound impact on the election outcome if it were to be held on Election Day. These are the states that Joe Biden won by 8-points or less in 2020:
- Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin
Those are currently the key swing states to watch in this cycle. The expectation would be that Trump would be able to retain the states he won four years ago with the question being whether he’d be able to flip enough swing states back his way from President Biden to win the Presidential election. Former President Trump ended the four-week improvement streak in national polling by President Biden. While Trump has maintained an advantage, Biden had consistently been narrowing Trump’s lead in the polls. Since the start of the year President Biden’s improvement has removed one state, Maine, from being a potential swing state that that would appear to be in play as of today.
As of today, the RealClear average of state polls shows...
- Biden retaining: Minnesota, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania
- Trump flipping: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Wisconsin
As of today, Trump is shown in the lead with a 293 to 245 vote advantage in the Electoral College. No doubt a lot will change between today and Election Day in November, however the former and perhaps future President of the United States is currently the best positioned to win.