Poll: Harris, Trump virtually tied in Georgia

The battle between former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris to win Georgia could be close, according to a new Atlanta-Journal Constitution/University of Georgia poll .

Why it matters: The poll of likely Georgia voters, released Wednesday, shows Trump leading Harris 47% to 44% — within the margin of error of 3.1 percentage points — with less than two months before the election.

• Roughly 7% of voters say they are undecided, and third-party candidates received below 1%.
• 12% of Black voters — a crucial group for Democrats — say they are undecided.

The big picture: In a July AJC poll conducted before Biden bowed out, Trump led Harris by a wider margin of 51% to 46% in a hypothetical matchup.

• Trump's lead was also wider in June when Biden was his opponent. Trump had a 5-point lead over the incumbent, with 8% of voters undecided, per polling at that time.
• Harris is also gaining ground among young voters compared to Biden. The vice president is in a statistical tie with the former president among people who are under 30.

Zoom in: Support from the base of the Republican Party remains solid for Trump, with more than 90% of Republicans, roughly two-thirds of white voters and a majority of people 65 and older backed Trump.

• About 65% of white women voters said they support Trump. Less than 4% are undecided.

Friction point : There are areas for improvement for Harris. According to the poll, 77% of Black voters and 86% of Democrats are supporting Harris.

What we're watching: About two-thirds of Georgia voters say the country is on the wrong track, but 58% said they think the economy will improve over the next year.

• 43% say the economy, inflation, cost of living and jobs are their top priorities.
• That was followed by preserving democracy (18%) and other issues — abortion, immigration and public safety — ranked in the single digits.

The fine print: The poll was conducted Sept. 9-15 and included 1,000 likely general election voters in Georgia.