In a recent Echelon Insights survey conducted on Monday, it was found that former President Donald Trump has taken a one-point lead over Vice President Kamala Harris in a head-to-head matchup. This result highlights Trump’s ability to overcome Harris’ “honeymoon” phase since she joined the race last month. The lead remains nearly unchanged (49-47 percent) since Echelon Insights released its findings in July.
The survey, conducted between August 23-25, sampled 1,031 likely voters and has a margin of error of 3.6 points. In a full field matchup, Trump and Harris are tied at 48 percent each, with third party candidates Stein, Oliver, and West garnering one percent each.
According to the poll, the three most pressing issues for voters were the cost of living (25 percent), immigration (14 percent), and jobs and the economy (12 percent. These issues are significant as inflation soared by about 20 percent across the board under the Biden-Harris administration, and millions of people invaded the southern border while illegal migrants were accused of committing heinous crimes.
The administration’s handling of these key issues has become a topic that the Harris campaign tries to avoid by simultaneously taking credit for some of the administration’s record while casting Trump as the incumbent responsible for soaring migrant crime and spiking inflation. This contradictory framing undermines Trump’s candidacy while also inaccurately attributing these issues to the previous administration, when they arose under the current one.
The media has largely failed to address this “catch-22” within Harris’ candidacy, which leaves her unable to campaign on policies that would fix crime, inflation, and border security without undermining the Biden-Harris administration’s claims of solving these key issues. However, she must tout the administration’s policy successes in order to validate her record and candidacy.
Wendell Husebo is a political reporter with Breitbart News and a former RNC War Room Analyst. He is the author of “Politics of Slave Morality.” Follow Wendell on “X” @WendellHusebø or on Truth Social @WendellHusebo.