Biden holds advantages in three key battleground states: Fox News poll

A new poll from Fox News shows Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden leading President Trump in the key battleground states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

The former vice president has a double-digit lead in Michigan, garnering 52 percent support among likely voters compared to Trump’s 40 percent.

He also leads the president by 5 points in Pennsylvania (50 to 45 percent) and 5 points in Wisconsin (49 to 44 percent).

Trump won each of these Rust Belt states by less than a percentage point in the 2016 election.

The poll did show Trump surpassing Biden in Ohio, garnering 48 percent support compared to the Democrat’s 45 percent. The president’s 3-point lead is a reversal from a poll last month that showed Biden ahead in the state by 5 points.

Fox News noted that fewer than 10 percent of respondents are undecided or support a third-party candidate in each of the four states.

Biden has significant leads over Trump among women in the four states, pollsters found. He is up by 19 points with female voters in Michigan, 6 points in Ohio, 12 points in Pennsylvania and 17 points in Wisconsin.

The former vice president also sees an advantage among suburban women, leading Trump by 35 points among the bloc in Michigan, 18 points in Ohio, 29 points in Pennsylvania and 21 points in Wisconsin.

The Fox News poll, conducted Oct. 17-20, came after Trump made an appeal to suburban women to support his reelection bid during a campaign rally in Johnstown, Pa.

“They talk about the suburban women. And somebody said, ‘I don’t know if the suburban woman likes you.’ I said, ‘Why?’” Trump told the crowd, though he did not clarify to whom he had spoken. “They said, ‘They may not like the way you talk,’ but I’m about law and order. I’m about having you safe. I’m about having your suburban communities. I don’t want to build low-income housing next to your house.” 

“Suburban women, they should like me more than anybody here tonight because I ended the regulation that destroyed your neighborhood. I ended the regulation that brought crime to the suburbs, and you’re going to live the American dream,” he added. “So can I ask you to do me a favor? Suburban women, will you please like me? I saved your damn neighborhood, OK?”

The poll, however, showed Trump leading by double-digit margins among white men without a college degree, a key demographic that helped him get elected four years ago. He is up by 5 points among that group in Michigan, 35 points in Ohio, 19 points in Pennsylvania, and 18 points in Wisconsin.

The president tweeted Thursday morning that the network’s polls are “totally FAKE.” 

“I am leading in all of the states mentioned,” he added.

.@FoxNews Polls are totally FAKE, just like they were in 2016. I am leading in all of the states mentioned, which you will soon see. I thought Fox was getting rid of its pollster. Sadly, it never happened!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 22, 2020

The Fox News poll was conducted under the joint direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company (R). It included interviews with likely voters in Michigan (1,032), Ohio (1,018), Pennsylvania (1,045) and Wisconsin (1,037) and has a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

–Updated at 12:16 p.m.