The furor over the FBI probe of Hillary Clinton’s emails is helping Donald Trump among independent voters in key swing states.
In Wisconsin, a state that for months has been seen as safe Democratic turf, a new Marquette Law School poll released Wednesday found a shift in independent voters’ views. Many moved toward Trump after the FBI said Friday it was again probing Clinton’s use of a private email system for government business.
In Florida, a new CNN/ORC survey of Florida voters had Clinton up 2 and Quinnipiac had her up 1. Trump was leading among independent voters, 46-40, Quinnipiac found.
In Pennsylvania, Quinnipiac gave Clinton a 4-point edge, while CNN/ORC had her up 5. Clinton was ahead by 4 with independent voters, Quinnpiac said.
In North Carolina, Trump was up 45-38 among independents, Quinnpiac said. Clinton led overall by 3. Quinnipiac’s polls were conducted Thursday through Tuesday.
In Wisconsin, among independent voters, Clinton was up by 7 over Trump on Wednesday and Thursday. Friday, Trump jumped to a 10 point advantage, then back to 8 in Saturday through Monday interviews.
He also solidified support among Republicans. Nearly three in four backed him Wednesday and Thursday, 87 percent on Friday and 86 percent on Saturday through Monday.
There was still good news for Clinton: She’s still up 6 overall, though that’s down from 11 before the Friday bombshell.
The vote margin showed “a little tightening,” said Charles Franklin, poll director.
“Within partisan identifiers, there is evidence that some undecided Republicans moved to support of Trump over the survey period and that independents shifted from a Clinton advantage to a Trump advantage, though all the shifts are inside the margin of error.”
David Lightman: 202-383-6101, @lightmandavid