Dems fare well against Trump in Ohio

Donald Trump almost certainly can’t win a second term without carrying battleground Ohio.

That’s why Democrats were celebrating a new poll Thursday that showed six of the party’s presidential hopefuls either beating or virtually tied with Trump in the Buckeye State, which the Republican won by more than 8 points in 2016.

“If Democrats can win Ohio, they are likely to win some of, if not most of, the Frost Belt states— especially the three that went the other way the last time: Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan,” said Peter Brown, the poll’s assistant director.

Of course caveats abound,

including the obvious: Election Day is still more than 15 months away, and Trump has beaten expectations before.

But as of now, former Vice President Joe Biden is besting Trump 50% to 42% in the Quinnipiac University poll.

And several other Democrats are essentially tied with the GOP president, the survey shows:

• California Sen. Kamala Harris ties Trump at 44%.

• South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg has an identical outcome, matching Trump at 44%.

• Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders comes within 1 point, with 45% to Trump’s 46%.

• Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren matches Sanders, trailing Trump 46% to 45%.

• New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker comes within a point of Trump, 44% to 43%.

“Former Vice President Joseph Biden calls himself a blue-collar guy. With Ohio certainly a blue-collar state, it is no surprise he is the Democrat who runs best against President Donald Trump and is solidly ahead in the Democratic primary in the Buckeye State,” Brown said.

In contrast, Ohio voters are not as likely to be enamored with the more liberal policies of “coastal Democrats,” he added.

Biden is taking 10% of the Ohio GOP vote and winning among independents 55% to 32%, the poll found.

Following the same pattern as the 2016 race, Trump is winning among white men and by double digits among whites with no college degree.

While 58% of Ohioans say they are better off financially than in 2016, Trump still wins job approval from 43 percent of Ohio voters, compared to 52 percent who disapprove — virtually the same outcome as when Quinnipiac last polled Ohio, in June 2018.

A key for Trump is increasing the number of voters who will cast a ballot for him even though they don’t like him, Brown said.

Among Ohio Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents only, Biden is the clear leader, although his 31% is far from a majority.

Harris and Sanders have 14% each, Warren nets 13% and Buttigieg

receives 6%. Another eight Dem hopefuls, including Youngstown-area Congressman Tim Ryan, check in at 1%, and 12 more candidates each wind up with less than 1%.

The telephone poll from July 17 through Monday by the Connecticut university of 1,431 Ohio voters has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points overall, while the sample of 556 Democrats and independent voters leaning Democratic has an error margin of plus or minus 5.1 percentage points. Of the poll participants, 35% identified themselves as Republican, 29% as Democratic and 28% as independent, while 8 percent didn’t know or answer. A new Quinnipiac Poll of Ohio voters shows six Democratic presidential candidates ahead of or essentially tied with President Donald Trump.

Joe Biden 50% Donald Trump 42%

Bernie Sanders Donald Trump

Kamala Harris Donald Trump

Pete Buttigieg Donald Trump

Cory Booker Donald Trump

45 46

Elizabeth Warren 45 Donald Trump 46

44 44

44 44

43 44