Trump’s Tricky Math

His campaign’s snapshot of swing-state polling points to warning signs beneath the surface.

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Republican presidential nominee and former president Donald Trump speaks at a campaign town hall meeting in Lancaster, Pa., October 20, 2024.

Brian Snyder/Reuters

The Trump campaign released a polling memo on October 13 contending that he was ahead by two points in the seven swing states. A close read of what the memo said — and didn’t say — nonetheless shows that the race still hangs by a thread.

The memo was authored by campaign chiefs Susie Wiles and Chris LaCivita and polling maestro Tony Fabrizio. It argues that their polling shows that Harris’s favorability is down slightly since Labor Day in the battleground states and that Trump now leads 49–47 in those. So far, so good for Trump.

Henry Olsen

About the Author

Henry Olsen

Henry Olsen is a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and the author of The Working-Class Republican: Ronald Reagan and the Return of Blue-Collar Conservatism.

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