Former President Donald Trump holds a narrow lead over President Joe Biden in North Carolina, a key swing state in this year's presidential election, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday.
Trump currently leads Biden 48% to 46% among registered voters, within the 3% margin of error, deeming the race too close to call. While it is of little surprise that Democrats support Biden 95% to 2% and Republicans support Trump 94% to 3%, most significant is the independent vote, with 49% backing Trump with 41% going to Biden.
When the race is expanded to include the various independent candidates, Trump maintains roughly the same edge leading, 41% to 38% over Biden. Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. received 12%, while Green Party candidate Jill Stein and independent candidate Cornel West each pulled in 3%.
Quinnipiac University polling analyst Tim Malloy noted that the relatively high numbers for third-party candidates speak to the overall malaise voters have with the two front-runners.
"With overall voter enthusiasm for Biden and Trump lukewarm at best, close to 1 in 5 North Carolina voters look at third party candidates with open minds and the potential to throw a wrench into the works in a close race," Malloy said.
On specific issues, Trump leads Biden by at a minimum of 5 percentage points on the economy, immigration, and the handling of international conflicts. Biden is favored by voters in terms of preserving democracy.