Latest Polls, Clinton vs. Trump: Clinton Leads Trump But Voters Say Neither Candidate Is Particularly Competent

The latest polls national polls Sunday gave Democrat Hillary Clinton as much as an 8-point edge over Republican Donald Trump, but voters say they are upset about the lack of national unity and unsure whether either of the major party candidates can keep the country safe.

The ABC-Washington Post poll gives the former secretary of state a 51 percent to 43 percent lead over the New York real estate mogul in a head-to-head matchup, but that lead drops to 46 percent to 41 percent if Libertarian Gary Johnson (9 percent) and Green Party candidate Jill Stein (2 percent) are added to the mix.

The Los Angeles Times-USC Tracking poll gives Clinton just a 1-point lead over Trump, 45 percent to 44 percent. The CBS-YouGov poll of battleground states (Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida) gives Clinton a 43 percent to 42 percent lead.

The NBC-Wall Street Journal-Marist poll examined the races in Nevada, Arizona, New Hampshire and Georgia, and indicated Clinton leads Trump in the two-person contest by a point in Nevada and New Hampshire while Trump leads Clinton by a point in Arizona and 3 points in Georgia.

“As we enter the final lap of this very unconventional election, it would not be surprising if the electoral map, in the end, has new contours,” Lee M. Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, told the Wall Street Journal. “Any of these four states could awaken a fault line in what is looking more and more like a shake-up election, with more states being up for grabs.”

Overall, the polls indicate the race is tightening with just nine weeks to go before the Nov. 8 General Election. The Real Clear Politics average of major polls gives Clinton a 3.1-point edge.

Forty-two percent of Clinton voters and 41 percent of Trump voters said they wouldn’t feel safe no matter who’s elected, CBS reported, and neither candidate is perceived to be able to handle a crisis well (Clinton, 48 percent; Trump, 43 percent).

The Washington Post reported more than 60 percent of voters say they do not consider either candidate honest or trustworthy. Fewer than half of Trump supporters say they are very enthusiastic about their candidate while fewer than a third of Clinton supporters are very enthusiastic about her.

Eighty percent of Trump supporters and 83 percent of Clinton supporters say the opposing candidate could do real damage to the country if elected.

Clinton, in an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union,” said Trump already has done real damage during the campaign and the next administration will have to repair it.

The CBS poll indicated Trump voters are unconcerned about their candidate’s lack of knowledge about key aspects of governing, saying they want a commander in chief who looks at the big picture. They also say a president should listen to his/her instincts rather than “experts” who often are wrong.