CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten sounded the alarm on Monday, highlighting the importance of Vice President Kamala Harris losing her slim lead over former President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania. Currently, Harris and Trump are neck and neck in the critical swing state, as indicated by the RealClearPolling average. Enten explained on “CNN News Central” that Pennsylvania could be the deciding factor for winning the electoral college in November.
CNN's Harry Enten Sounds Alarm About Harris' Vanishing Lead In 'Very Pivotal' Swing State pic.twitter.com/Nlk0Hztm7S
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) September 9, 2024
“So I just want to take a look at Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania. And what we see is a tightening race in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, alright? This is Harris versus Trump margin in the great commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Enten told host John Berman. “A month ago, when you looked at the polls, New York Times plus four Harris, plus three Quinnipiac for Harris, Franklin & Marshall, plus three for Harris.”
“But look at polls that have come out over the last week or so. And what do we see? We see a much tighter race. We see a tie in the CBS News’ YouGov poll. We see a tie in the CNN/SSRS poll,” he continued. “And this, to me, is part of an emerging pattern, which is in a very pivotal state, what we saw was a small Harris lead, but within the margin of error becoming a race that is way, way, way too close to call at this particular point, one that is even.”
Berman pressed Enten on how crucial winning Pennsylvania could be in the election. Enten responded, “Alright, so let’s take a look at this particular map. This is what the betting favorites, but with Kamala Harris taking the great commonwealth of Pennsylvania over here, what do we see? We see that Kamala Harris wins in this particular case,” Enten explained. “Look at that, with exactly 270 electoral votes to Donald Trump’s 268. All right, so Kamala Harris wins the electoral college when she wins the commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”
He added, “But let’s take Pennsylvania out of Kamala Harris’ column and put ’em into Donald Trump’s column. Again, with the betting favorites, what happens when we turn Pennsylvania red? Well, take a look here,” he said. “Donald Trump wins in the Electoral College, 287 electoral votes to Kamala Harris’ 251 electoral votes. So that is why I say it is pivotal … The bottom line is it is so important. This state is very, very important.”
According to CNN’s late August polling, Trump is leading Harris among white likely voters without college degrees in Pennsylvania by a significant 32 points. CNN political director David Chalian described these figures as a “trouble sign for Harris.”
Nationally, Trump is edging out Harris 48% to 47%, as per a Sunday New York Times/Siena College poll conducted from Sept. 3 to Sept. 6. Enten noted on Friday that Trump could clinch the election if he “outperforms his current polls by just a single point.”
