Less than three months ahead of the highly anticipated presidential election—most notably the matchup between Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris—and the former president is rejecting the possibility that his opponent is gaining popularity in the polls.
In remarks made over the phone to Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum when he was reacting to Harris’ speech accepting the Democratic nomination at the party’s National Convention on August 22, Trump denied the reality that she was more popular than President Joe Biden.
MacCallum made mention of the fact that Harris has dispelled the lead that Trump had over Biden when he was still the Democratic nominee. The vice president has particularly gained footing in the polls among black, female, and young voters. One national survey conducted within the past week showed Harris favored by eight percentage points, with her polling numbers at 47% compared to Trump’s 39%.
Speaking with the former president, MacCallum described Harris as “having some success” in the polls and asked him about his “strategy” to reinvigorate his supporters. Trump denied her words, claiming that his opponent is “not having success.”
He also pointed out that is “doing great” among Hispanic voters, black male voters, and women. Regarding this last demographic, Trump said that he is popular among them “because women want safety.” His words took a personal turn when he told MacCallum that Harris is up in the polls “only in [her] eyes,” saying yet again that his campaign is “doing very well” when it comes to surveyed voters.
Previously, the former president held a lead over Biden, who unexpectedly dropped out of the presidential race at the end of July and endorsed Harris instead. But no matter how loudly Trump denies it, his new competitor has made the race more interesting as she poses a greater threat to defeating him.
Since joining the Democratic ticket as its presidential candidate, Harris has overtaken Trump’s national lead in the polls as well as in key swing states. In these seven battleground states—which are expected to be the deciding factors in the upcoming election—Harris is leading in five.
