Amid a tight presidential race and a close final national poll by NBC News, a handful of swing voters have shown the lesser of two evils in recent weeks. He thinks he can decide the 2024 elections.
Vice President Kamala Harris is an “empty vessel,” says one voter. Others worry that world leaders will not respect Harris because she is a woman. Another voter’s concern: It’s unclear what he stands for beyond opposing Trump.
But then there are voters who believe that former President Donald Trump does not have the character or demeanor that a president should possess. He is “very rude” and “very liar”. Some were particularly critical of the racist and condescending rhetoric of Trump’s allies at last week’s Madison Square Garden rally, criticizing them for alienating Americans instead of bringing them together.
This is according to the responses of the most recent 24 respondents National NBC News surveyof voters who said they had seriously considered voting for Harris or Trump in the past two or three weeks before choosing another option, conducted in the past few days.
That’s a pretty small share of the poll: Only 2% of those who said they would vote for Harris said they had seriously considered Trump (and vice versa) in the past few weeks.
But the responses from those voters — who were given time for lengthy responses, in their own words — shed light on what goes into voters’ final analysis of who they will support in the election. can be resolved by a slim marginetc in major battlegrounds.
For those who considered Harris but ended up supporting Trump, many of the key points were based on either the economy or frustration with the Biden administration’s direction. There were also concerns that Harris would be sexually or “weak” in reality or perception.
“I worry, I think other countries won’t take him seriously, and they’ll take Trump more seriously,” said the New York woman, who is in her mid-40s.
A Hispanic man in his mid-20s in Missouri revealed a similar contrast.
“Donald Trump seems like a bully to me, but it’s good to have a bully in your corner, especially when they’ve proven that what they’re doing is going to bring down inflation,” he said.
“At the same time, Kamala Harris seems like a principled person, if a little crazy with her interviews,” said a survey respondent. “He’s in power with Biden and things are not going well in the world.”
Other voters mocked Harris’ laugh, calling Trump “more transparent about what he wants to do” and noting that they support Trump’s economic policies, such as tariffs and not taxing overtime wages.
In short, the former president’s tone and demeanor looms large for Harris supporters who think seriously about Trump.
“He’s very rude and I just don’t trust him. He lies a lot about something,” said a white woman over 65 in Wisconsin.
Two voters mentioned Trump The final rally at Madison Square Gardenwhere the comedian who spoke before Trump Called Puerto Rico “garbage” and others made sexist and other inflammatory comments, as something that turned them off.
A black Hispanic man living in the state of Pennsylvania attacked Trump by mistakenly attributing a comment about Puerto Ricans to Trump.
“I really didn’t like the rally in New York where he called Puerto Ricans trash. I can’t vote for that,” said the independent, age 25-29. questionnaire response. “His policies are good for seniors.”
With such a small group of voters undecided after a long campaign, a number of issues, sentiments or recent news can influence these people in deciding how they will vote.
The NBC News poll also asked nearly 400 respondents whether they had seen, read or heard anything about either candidate in the past few weeks that left them with a more or less favorable impression.
About Harris, 40% said they saw something that made them view him more positively, 43% said that something made them view him less negatively, and 17% said they either didn’t change anything or saw nothing that would change their opinion. .
Meanwhile, 33% said they saw something that made them view Trump more positively, 46% said they saw something that made them view him less negatively, and 19% said nothing moved the needle for them.
Again, several pollsters brought up rally comments about Puerto Ricans as they described something that made voters view Trump more negatively. 6 out of 34 people who answered the open part of the question specifically mentioned it.
“This whole political rally with the comedian was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” said one 60- to 64-year-old Texas woman who tends to support Harris. “I never respected him, and it’s hard to forget that he caused the riots that led to the American people storming the Capitol. This is the beginning of the end for me.”
When asked what made them less favorable to Harris in recent weeks, several voters pointed to his current role in the White House and his ties to President Joe Biden, while others said they did not know enough about his plans.
“He’s not moving away from Joe Biden. He’s just following the path that Joe Biden has been on for the last four years,” said a middle-aged Florida man who leans toward Trump.
“I wish he’d be more interested in what the country needs,” said a middle-aged Idaho woman who said she likely supports a third-party candidate. “I think he’s focused on the needs of women. I think he’s attacking Trump. I feel like he’s not getting deep into an issue like immigration. I think he’s saying a bunch of smart things, but I’m not getting answers. His vocabulary is really good, but I can’t get an answer.”
And one voter, an undecided Louisiana woman between the ages of 30 and 34, shed light on why she’s stuck.
“As for Kamal, I am not sure what he has done for the country so far. As for Donald Trump, he has done good things for the money,” he said.
But, he added, “it promotes violence and racism in the country.”