Democratic Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz (D-MN) got a big update from his own backyard. A new MinnPost-Embold Research poll suggests a surprisingly tight race between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump in the state of Minnesota, with little room for either to make significant gains.
The poll showed Harris leading Trump by a slim 48%-45% margin, unchanged from last month’s numbers. The narrow lead falls within the 2.4% margin of error, showing how razor-thin the competition remains. Only 2% of voters claim to be undecided, a drop from 3% the previous month, while 5% indicated they would vote for someone other than Harris or Trump.
One of the standout findings was the shift among independents, who now favor Trump over Harris by a 36%-27% margin, with 24% preferring “another candidate.” This swing could prove crucial, as both campaigns seek to consolidate support in the final stretch before Election Day.
However, the biggest news was Sen. JD Vance’s (R-OH) changing favorability among Minnesota voters. In September, Vance’s unfavorability rating stood at minus 16%. However, it has since improved, with his unfavorable rating reduced to minus 8%.
Jessica Mason from Embold Research explained that Vance’s recent rise in popularity could be partly due to his debate with Governor Tim Walz on October 1. She noted that the vice presidential debate, marked by its civility, “put Vance’s face in front of voters,” presenting him favorably to a nationwide audience.
Walz suffered a number of setbacks over the course of the 90-minute debate, including one notable moment where he failed to answer why he lied about his trips to China. The Minnesota governor claimed that he was in the country during the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989, though a report from CNN found the claim to be untrue. The Democratic Party nominee also declared that he has “become friends with school shooters” in a bizarre moment. CNN had previously reported that Walz was very nervous about facing off against a “lawyer type” like Vance and was extremely worried about letting Vice President Harris down.
Walz, the Democratic vice-presidential candidate, has found himself embroiled in a series of controversies that have since casted shadows over his campaign. Notably, his assertion that he was in Hong Kong during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests has been debunked, tarnishing his credibility.
His extensive ties with China have also sparked unease, involving interactions with officials from the Chinese Communist Party. These connections have prompted the House Oversight Committee to launch an investigation. The Walz administration’s delayed response to massive fraud in state programs has also been sharply criticized. In the notorious Feeding Our Future scandal, $250 million meant for child nutrition was misappropriated, questioning the effectiveness of his governance.
Controversy has surrounded Walz’s military service as well, with some alleging that he abandoned his National Guard unit before a deployment to Iraq. Nevertheless, records confirm he retired prior to the deployment order, and his service has been defended by former commanders. Walz’s past includes a 1995 arrest for driving under the influence in Nebraska, to which he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of reckless driving.
(BREAKING: Gold’s Bull Market Is Just Getting Started. Don’t Get Left Out)