Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and President Trump are essentially tied in traditionally Republican Texas, with just nine days until the election.
Three southern battlegrounds in the presidential contest remain up for grabs just a little over a week before Election Day, according to new polling from CBS News.
Biden has a 2 percentage-point edge over Trump among registered voters in Florida, with 50% support for the Democratic nominee compared with 48% for Trump, the Oct. 20-23 poll found.
In Georgia, they’re tied at 49%-49%.
And in North Carolina, Biden leads, 51%-47%.
The poll also found that voters in each party have very different views about the risks associated with the coronavirus, with Biden supporters far more likely to say they could contract it.
In Florida, 56% of Biden supporters said they are very concerned they will catch it, compared with just 13% of Trump supporters.
In Georgia, it was 53%-15%, and in North Carolina 55%-12%.
When asked which candidate can better handle the virus outbreak, registered voters in all three states gave Biden higher marks.
He led Trump 49%-41% in Florida, 48%-41% in Georgia and 50%-39% in North Carolina.
Biden is essentially tied with Trump in Texas, which hasn’t backed a Democratic presidential candidate since 1976.
Just over a week until the election, a poll by the Dallas Morning News/UT Tyler found Biden leading Trump by 2 percentage points among registered voters, 46% to 44%, and by a margin of 3 percentage points among all likely voters, 48% to 45%.
Both results are within the margins of error.
This is the third poll released in the past week that shows Biden running even with Trump in the traditionally Republican stronghold.
A Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday found the candidates tied 47% to 47% among likely voters.
Texas hasn’t elected a Democrat statewide since 1994 and hasn’t voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since Jimmy Carter.
Biden’s strong showing in the state is largely due to minority voters.
Hispanic registered voters back the former vice president over the incumbent 67% to 20% and Black registered voters back Biden 79% to 5%.
White voters support Trump 62% to 31%.
Biden will make his first campaign trip to Georgia on Tuesday.
Former President Obama will travel to Florida on Tuesday to campaign for his former vice president.
Trump won Georgia by five percentage points in 2016, but Democrats have made inroads in the state, particularly among white, college educated voters.
The RealClearPolitics average of state polls has Trump and Biden tied.