Trump, Biden Tied In Traditionally Red State Georgia, New Poll Says

A new poll released Wednesday by Monmouth University shows President Trump and presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden tied in Georgia, a state that typically votes for Republicans in presidential elections. The survey puts both Biden and Trump at 47% support.

Biden has a 22-point lead among independent voters in Georgia, the poll reveals. Black voters in the state overwhelmingly support Biden, with the Democratic candidate picking up 89% of the African-American vote to Trump’s 5%.

"Trump has a lock on his base but Biden is performing much better than [Hillary] Clinton did in key swing areas," Patrick Murray, the director of the Monmouth Polling Institute, said about the survey.

In the 2016 election, Trump picked up 50.44% of the vote in Georgia, with Clinton receiving 45.35%.

Georgia has 16 electoral votes. The latest survey from Monmouth could be a major warning sign for the Trump campaign, as Georgia has been won by every Republican presidential nominee since 1996. A Biden win in Georgia would make Trump's path to 270 electoral votes much more difficult.

Electoral trends in recent years show the state is becoming more Democratic, as the Georgia electorate becomes younger and more racially diverse. During the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial election, Republican Brian Kemp edged Democratic challenger Stacey Abrams by a slim margin, 50.2% to 48.8% -- the closest gubernatorial race in the state since 1966.

Trump has been struggling in nationwide polls, as voters increasingly disapprove of his responses to the COVID-19 outbreak and after protests in June over racial justice. An Economist/YouGov poll on Wednesday showed Biden with 49% support nationwide, with Trump at 40%.