September 28, 2020

State of the race - what I see


Taking a look at the RealClearPolitics average of polls in the battleground states, I am seeing results that are odds with their interpretation of who is leading the race for president in 2020. President Trump currently has 205 electoral college votes.  Joe Biden currently has 201 electoral college votes and there are 132 electoral college votes that have not yet been decided.*

In the swing states I'm seeing the following results based on the available RCP aggregation of polls: 

-- Texas has a total of 1 valid poll.  That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up. Trump has 52.7% and Biden has 47.3% of the weighted valid vote total. Trump leads by 5.4%. 
-- Florida has a total of 0 valid polls. That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up.
-- Pennsylvania has a total of 1 valid poll.  That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up. Trump has 50.1% and Biden has 49.9% of the weighted valid vote total. Trump leads by 0.1%. 
-- Ohio has a total of 2 valid polls. Trump has 52.3% and Biden has 47.7% of the weighted valid vote total. Trump leads by 4.6%. 
-- Georgia has a total of 2 valid polls. Trump has 50.3% and Biden has 49.7% of the weighted valid vote total. Trump leads by 0.6%. 
-- Michigan has a total of 2 valid polls. Trump has 49.4% and Biden has 50.6% of the weighted valid vote total. Biden leads by 1.1%. 
-- North Carolina has a total of 3 valid polls. Trump has 51.1% and Biden has 48.9% of the weighted valid vote total. Trump leads by 2.2%. 
-- Virginia has a total of 1 valid poll.  That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up. Trump has 49.4% and Biden has 50.6% of the weighted valid vote total. Biden leads by 1.2%. 
-- Arizona has a total of 0 valid polls. That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up. 
-- Wisconsin has a total of 0 valid polls. That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up. 
-- Minnesota has a total of 1 valid poll.  That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up. Trump has 48.8% and Biden has 51.2% of the weighted valid vote total. Biden leads by 2.4%. 
-- Colorado has a total of 0 valid polls. That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up.
-- Nevada has a total of 1 valid poll.  That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up. Trump has 43.8% and Biden has 56.2% of the weighted valid vote total. Biden leads by 12.3%. 
-- Iowa has a total of 0 valid polls. That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up.
-- New Mexico has a total of 0 valid polls. That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up.
-- New Hampshire has a total of 0 valid polls. That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up.
-- Maine has a total of 1 valid poll.  That is not sufficient to make a prediction in the state. The state remains a toss up. Trump has 39.3% and Biden has 60.7% of the weighted valid vote total. Biden leads by 21.3%. 
As for electoral college wins: most are still toss-ups if you look at the validity of the state polls.
Texas (38) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Florida (29) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Pennsylvania (20) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Ohio (18) --Trump would get the electoral college votes.
Georgia (16) -- Trump would get the electoral college votes.
Michigan (16) -- Biden would get the electoral college votes.
North Carolina (15) -- Trump would get the electoral college votes.
Virginia (13) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Arizona (11) No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Wisconsin (10) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Minnesota (10) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Colorado (9) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Nevada (6) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Iowa (6) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
New Mexico (5) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
New Hampshire (4) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
Maine (4) -- No one currently is winning the electoral college vote.
*These results are based on the following parameters; polls taken in the last 14 days, with a sample size of at least 500 among likely voters, with a margin of error of less than 4.1%, among pollsters rated C+ or better, using the Pollster Tracking by FiveThirtyEight.com, and removing 538's allocated pollster bias and my calculated temporal pro-Clinton bias vs. actual election results from 2016. States must have at least 2 valid polls to be considered.

Realistically I think both Texas and Iowa belong in the Trump column, which would up his electoral college total to 249.  With that he still needs to hold Arizona, and either Wisconsin, Michigan or Pennsylvania to put him over the 270 needed to win.

The president is in good but not great shape electorally, according to the evidence offered by pollsters (which has been presented as very bad for the president).  The reality may be very different.  But even if the president is in great shape, there's a movement afoot to delegitimize his potential win if not outright steal the election for Biden.  Every vote matters, as long as it is a real vote.  And in addition, the Republicans need to hold the senate and win back congress in order to implement Trump's agenda to drain the swamp, stand up to China, and make America great again.

UPDATE:  In my map I have assumed Florida for president Trump, where elsewhere I have left it as no current winner.  I think Trump will win Florida but I cannot call it that way based on the evidence.  Given that, I would add Florida to the "realistically in Trump's column" paragraph but as a must hold.  Otherwise the analysis holds up. Barring this craziness.

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