Biden up by 9 points in Pennsylvania: poll

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden leads President Trump by 9 points among likely voters in Pennsylvania, a key swing state where the former vice president was born.

A new NBC News-Marist poll found that Biden and his running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), have the support of 53 percent of likely voters in Pennsylvania.

By comparison, Trump and Vice President Pence are backed by 44 percent of likely voters in the state.

Both candidates see Pennsylvania as a must-win battleground this year. Trump carried the state in 2016 by only about 44,000 votes — less than 1 percentage point.

However, Biden was born in Scranton and has spent more time in Pennsylvania than in any state with the exception of his home state of Delaware since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

Biden has a net positive favorability rating in the Keystone State, with 50 percent of voters viewing him favorably compared to 46 percent who view him negatively.

The poll also found that a majority — 52 percent — of likely Pennsylvania voters disapprove of the president’s job performance while in office, compared to 45 percent who approve. 

Just 44 percent have a favorable impression of Trump, while 54 percent have a negative one, according to the poll.

“With Trump’s job approval rating and favorability upside down, he needs to reshuffle the deck to close the gap,” said Lee M. Miringoff of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion. “Trump’s best bet is on the economy to do just that.”

The Biden-Harris ticket is also leading among suburban, women and college-educated voters in Pennsylvania.

Biden leads Trump by nearly 20 points among likely voters in the suburbs, 58 to 39 percent. The poll noted that the figure represents a significant flip from 2016, when Trump won suburban voters in the state by about 8 points.

Among likely voters with college degrees, Biden leads Trump, 63 to 34 percent. The Democrats also lead among women, 59 to 38 percent.

The NBC News-Marist poll, which sampled 771 likely Pennsylvania voters, was conducted from Aug. 31 to Sept. 7 and has a margin of error of 4.4 percentage points. Pollsters interviewed a total of 1,147 Pennsylvania adults, with an overall margin of error of 3.6 percentage points for those results.