Donald Trump’s last stand

DONALD Trump is now leading the race for the White House because voters think he is the best person to revive the US economy after the coronavirus crisis, a poll reveals.

The President is on 48 per cent against his Democrat rival Joe Biden on 46 per cent, according to the third monthly Democracy Institute/sunday Express opinion poll.

In the swing states of Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Mr Trump has a lead of 48 per cent to 43 per cent, which would see him remaining President under the electoral college system of voting.

In Florida, the lead is 47 to 45 per cent while in New Hampshire it is 46 to 43.

The polling suggests Trump is emerging as the race leader because of a belief he is best at handling the economy. One in three voters puts the economy as the top election issue, followed by education and the coronavirus crisis in joint second place.and voters believe Mr Trump is better for the economy compared to his rival, by 57 to 43 per cent.

While most polls have a clear lead for Biden, top right, the Democracy Institute poll shows Mr Trump is winning from “shy voters” who do not want to say they are voting for him. As many as 71 per cent of Trump voters are “shy” to admit it, this poll reveals.

Patrick Basham, director of the Democracy Institute, suggested the Biden campaign may have “reached its high water mark”. He said: “Although Biden remains in a competitive race with Donald Trump, and may well do so

until election day, his support isn’t growing. And, tellingly, almost all of the issues that matter most to voters are trending in President Trump’s favour. They don’t especially blame him for the lockdown-induced economic contraction and they think he’ll do a better job of righting the economic ship.”