Trump narrowly leads in new poll in New Hampshire following Biden’s weak debate

Coming off President Joe Biden ’s poor debate performance last week, former President Donald Trump surged ahead by two points in a new poll out of New Hampshire published on Monday.

The Saint Anselm College poll found 44% of New Hampshire voters said they would support Trump, compared to 42% who said Biden was their choice. Another 4% said they planned to vote for independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

A similar poll conducted in December found Biden had a 10-point lead in the state. In this most recent poll, Biden is viewed favorably by 39% of respondents and unfavorably by 59%, while Trump holds a 42% favorable and 57% unfavorable rating.

"Biden leads among voters who dislike both candidates. However, more Democratic voters are drifting toward independent candidates than their Republican counterparts,” New Hampshire Institute of Politics Director Neil Levesque said. “While 89% of Republicans are solidly backing Trump, Biden secures the support of only 82% of Democrats."

Of those polled who watched the debate, 54% said Trump won, while just 6% said Biden won and 39% said there was no winner. The poll also found that 81% of poll respondents said the debate won’t affect their vote in November.

Biden’s poor debate performance last week renewed concerns about whether he’ll be able to beat Trump or hold office for four more years. Biden has continued to defend his debate performance amid calls for him to drop out of the race. Notably, no Democratic lawmakers have joined those calls.

New Hampshire is considered to be “likely Democratic,” according to the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. In an average of statewide polling, Biden is still leading, although these averages do not factor in the most recent St. Anselm poll.

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The last time a Republican candidate won the state of New Hampshire in a presidential election was George W. Bush in 2000. Biden won New Hampshire by seven points last cycle, earning 52.7% of the vote, compared to Trump’s 45.4%.

The poll included the views of 1,700 registered voters from June 28-29. The margin of error is about 2.3%.