60°
If the presidential election were today and these were the two candidates, who would you vote for?
- Hillary Clinton
- Donald Trump
- I wouldn't vote
- I'd place a write-in vote for another candidate
- I'd vote for a third-party candidate
Clinton, who has lived in Chappaqua since 1999, had enjoyed comfortable leads over Trump in numerous polls prior to this week. But the first polls since Trump's Republican challengers Ted Cruz and John Kasich suspended their campaigns show statistical dead heats between Trump and Clinton as well as Trump and Clinton's lone Democratic challenger, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, in three key swing states.
Quinnipiac University's Swing State Poll focuses on Florida, Ohio and Pennsylvania because, it said, since 1960, no candidate has won the presidential race without taking at least two of these three states.
The results are as follows:
- Florida: Clinton is at 43 percent, with 42 percent for Trump. Sanders is at 44 percent to Trump's 42 percent;
- Ohio: Trump edges Clinton 43-39 percent. Sanders gets 43 percent to Trump's 41 percent;
- Pennsylvania: Clinton is at 43 percent to Trump's 42 percent. Sanders leads Trump 47-41 percent.
"Trump is doing better in Pennsylvania than the GOP nominees in 2008 and 2012," said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac Poll. "And the two candidates are about where their party predecessors were at this point in Ohio and Florida."
Brown said the 2016 election may wind up being "good for divorce lawyers."
"The gender gap is massive and currently benefits Trump," Brown said. "In Pennsylvania, Clinton's 19-point lead among women matches Trump's 21-point margin among men. In Ohio, she is up 7 points among women but down 15 points with men.
"In Florida she is up 13 points among women but down 13 points among men."
Voters also said Trump would do a better job handling the economy. He also would do a better job handling terrorism, voters in Florida and Ohio say. Pennsylvania voters are divided.
"By wide margins, voters in all three states say Clinton is more intelligent than Trump and by smaller margins, voters in all three states say she has higher moral standards," Brown said.
Trump, who owns an estate in Bedford, also owns Trump National Golf Club Hudson Valley in Stormville and Trump National Westchester in Briarcliff Manor. The Trump name also adorns Trump Tower At City Center in White Plains, Trump Plaza in New Rochelle, Trump Park Residences in Yorktown and the Donald J. Trump State Park on the Westchester/Putnam border.
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