Democrat President Joe Biden now appears to be in trouble in deep-blue Virginia as he continues to shed once-reliable liberal voters, a new poll has revealed.
According to the results of a new survey published Wednesday, Biden and President Donald Trump are currently dead even in the state of Virginia.
The Democrat stronghold of Virginia hasn’t backed a Republican for the White House in two decades.
The head-to-head poll from Roanoke College’s Institute for Policy and Opinion Research shows Trump and Biden each receiving 42% support from likely voters in the commonwealth.
Another 14% said they would vote for other candidates.
The remaining 2% said they were undecided.
When three other left-wing third-party candidates were polled, Biden edged ahead of Trump by 40% to 38%.
Independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. received 8% support, Green Party leader Jill Stein received 3%, and independent Cornel West received 1% support.
Another 8% said they would vote for “other” candidates in the five-way matchup.
2 percent said they were undecided.
Virginia has been sparsely polled because it is widely seen as a safe state for Biden.
Previous Roanoke College polls from February and December 2023 showed Biden narrowly ahead of Trump in a state the Democrat won by 10 percentage points four years ago.
Between 1952 and 2004, Virginia voters backed the Republican nominee in every presidential election but one — 1964, when Democrat Lyndon Johnson defeated Republican Barry Goldwater in a landslide.
Since Barack Obama’s election in 2008, however, no GOP nominee has taken the commonwealth’s 13 electoral votes.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) came closest to putting Virginia in the Republican column in 2012.
However, Trump’s team has repeatedly stressed it sees Virginia as “in play” for November.
Trump points to poll numbers showing a statistical tie or Biden narrowly ahead.
“All across America, millions of people in so-called ‘Blue States’ are joining our movement based on LOVE, INTELLIGENCE, and, above all, COMMON SENSE,” Trump said in a statement responding to the poll.
Karoline Leavitt, the Trump campaign’s national press secretary, added:
“Joe Biden is so weak, and Democrats are in such disarray, that not only is President Trump winning every traditional battleground state, but longtime blue states such as Minnesota, Virginia, and New Jersey are now in play.
“President Trump is on offense with a winning message and growing his movement every single day.
“Joe Biden’s campaign should be terrified.”
Democrat Louise Lucas, president pro tempore of the Virginia Senate, shot back in a statement, saying:
“Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump by ten points in 2020 in Virginia, and then Trump’s anti-abortion agenda cost Republicans the state legislature in 2023.
“Trump is toxic and has no campaign presence in Virginia, while the Biden campaign is working to win every vote across the commonwealth.
“He’s welcome to waste his time campaigning here.”
While the 45th president lost Virginia by double digits four years ago, he came within 5.3 percentage points of shocking Hillary Clinton in 2016.
Dr. Harry Wilson, senior political analyst for IPOR and professor emeritus of political science at Roanoke College, said of the polling:
“These results suggest that Virginia could be ‘in play’ in November.
“But five months is an eternity in politics.
“This tie or two-point lead seems dramatic, but they are within the margin of error of the results of the February 2024 and November 2023 Roanoke College Polls.
“Still, it seems that Trump is narrowing Biden’s lead, which has all but disappeared.”
As in most other polls, the economy was rated as the No. 1 issue for voters (44%).
Immigration comes in second at 14% and abortion is third at 13%.
The survey also showed that the race is still very volatile.
Just 64% of respondents say they are “very certain” of their choice.
28% say they are “somewhat certain.”
The Roanoke College poll was conducted May 12-21 among 711 Virginia residents.
The survey has a margin of error of 4.24%.
Meanwhile, an Economist/ YouGov poll released Wednesday showed Trump narrowly leading Biden in a five-way national survey.
Trump came in at 41% support and Biden got 40% support, while Kennedy got 4% and Stein and West got 1% each.
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