Following rocky debate, Biden takes lead over Trump in latest exclusive Channel 2 poll

ATLANTA — We are seeing how the first presidential debate changed Georgia voters' opinions.

For the first time, former Vice President Joe Biden is leading our exclusive Channel 2 Action News/Landmark Communications poll.

New numbers out Thursday have Biden leading President Donald Trump 47% to 45%.

Compare that to our Landmark poll from one month ago, when Trump was leading Biden 47% to 40%.

The new poll questioned 500 Georgians via mobile and landline phones.

“This is within the margin of error so it’s essentially showing a tie. And it may surprise some Republicans. It’s a solidly red state,” said Republican strategist and consultant Brian Robinson.

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“I think this poll shows what we’ve seen in Georgia, Biden is up and Trump numbers are going down,” said Tharon Johnson, senior adviser for Biden’s Georgia campaign.

On the question of who won Tuesday night’s debate, Biden takes it 47% to 37% over Trump.

People in Georgia seem quite certain of who they’ll vote for, as just 6% said they were undecided.

Yet 9% of those polled said the debate did change their minds. Both Robinson and Johnson found that number to be high.

“We’ve got to dissect these polls, but more importantly make sure people go out and vote,” Johnson said.

By race, Biden maintains his commanding lead among Black voters, nearly 82% to Trump’s 8%. Among white voters, Trump leads Biden 64% to 29%.

In the end, the only thing that matters is who gets the most votes in the right places.

On the question of ‘who would you vote for today?’, Biden’s lead over Trump is nearly 47% to 45%, well within the 4% margin of error.

Suburban women are considered the key.

“One thing I saw in here was a significant gender gap. This shows in Georgia, Trump is winning men by a large margin, but Biden winning women by an even bigger margin,” Robinson said.

“I believe women will play a significant role in who the next president of the United States will be, but particularly white women, suburban, college educated, disaffected white women will play important role in who the next president will be,” Johnson said.

The vice-presidential debate is up next. It is scheduled for Oct. 7 between Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris.

The next presidential debate is expected to take place Oct. 15 in Miami.

First presidential debate highlights (NCD)

Cox Media Group