Former president Donald Trump leads President Joe Biden by 8 points in Michigan, according to a CNN poll released Friday.
The poll shows 50 percent of likely Michigan voters supporting Trump, with only 42 percent supporting Biden. Biden only holds a 35 percent approval rating in the state, while 40 percent of voters view Trump favorably.
Trump’s voters are also far more enthusiastic about his candidacy, with 62 percent of likely Trump voters saying it is more of a vote "for Trump" than "against Biden." For Biden, however, these numbers are almost exactly reversed, with only 37 percent describing their vote as being "for Biden" and 63 percent describing it as being "against Trump."
Potential third-party candidate bids also hurt Biden more than Trump. A hypothetical matchup that includes Cornel West and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. shows Trump leading with 40 percent, Biden at 34 percent, Kennedy at 18 percent, and West at 4 percent.
Warning signs have already appeared for Biden in the state, which he narrowly won in 2020. While Biden handily won the Democratic primary in February, over 100,000 Michigan Democrats voted "uncommitted" as a sign of protest over Biden’s handling of the war in Gaza. Voters trust Trump to handle the conflict by a margin of 20 points over Biden.