Less than a month until Election Day: where do we stand?
As the 2020 Presidential Election nears, both President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden are ramping up their campaign efforts and flooding the airwaves with advertisements.
On the campaign end of things, Trump – who trails in the polls – is attempting to build momentum in states that he is currently struggling in. In the month of September, Trump had over 10 rallies, all in states that are either considered toss-ups or must win.
Biden, however, is outspending Trump on advertising in key states. His spending has been focused on the states that are considered the “big six,” Florida, Arizona, North Carolina, Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, all of which are states that Trump won in 2016.
These states may very well decide the election once again.
What do the polls say?
The polls point to Biden as a downright winner of the election, with leads in states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin. With that in mind, seven other states are considered toss-ups. The path for the current president seems nearly impossible, as he would have to sweep the toss-up states and turn a state Biden currently leads in.
Though Trump supporters may feel like they are in good standing, all of these toss-up states were won by Trump in 2016. Trump’s performances in these states have to focus on different aspects and he must cater to the working class in states like Pennsylvania and Michigan, while also keeping the Evangelicals in Arizona in mind.
The Presidential Debates
Ultimately, the first presidential debate may go down as one of the worst in history. Between Trump interrupting Biden often and moderator Chris Wallace trying to calm down the president, it was simply mess. It is fair to say most Americans believed the same thing, which made things difficult to declare a “winner.”
The coherent parts of the debate saw Trump shine on economic issues, while floundering on racial and coronavirus-related issues. Many pundits highlighted his inability to condemn white supremacist groups, with his quote “proud boys stand back and stand by” failing to suffice. In a time where racial issues are heightened in the country, the president simply did not deliver. In regards to the coronavirus, Trump’s response to the pandemic was brought into question, which he proceeded to vigorously defend.
Conversely, Biden struggled with economic issues and seemed to dodge coronavirus questions. Then the big question came about the Supreme Court: would he pack the court? He failed to answer this as well, claiming he’s already made a statement on this situation.
The Vice Presidential Debates
A week later, Vice President Mike Pence and Senator Kamala Harris went toe-to-toe on the debate stage. This was less than a week after President Trump’s coronavirus diagnosis, so the Biden campaign requested extra space and plexiglass between the VP candidates.
Both Pence and Harris gave decent performances, providing actual substance to the debate compared to the presidential candidates. There were more civil talks of policy, the Supreme Court, and the stances of each other’s running mates. The best piece of the debate was about the economy, as Pence and Harris gave sound points and defended them pretty well.
The fate of our nation relies on these next few weeks, as the two campaigns feel the pressure of November 3rd being less than one month away.
Sources:
Photo credit: ABC News
https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2020/10/07/vice-presidential-debate-live-updates/
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/2020-election-forecast/
https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/30/politics/trump-biden-first-debate-takeaways/index.html
