Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., leads President Trump in hypothetical matchups in three states that were critical to the Republican’s victory in 2016, according to internal polling conducted by the Sanders team.
The campaign released the data to reporters Monday, showing 52% of likely voters in Michigan inclined to back Sanders in the 2020 general election, in comparison to 41% for Trump.
The statistics were similar in Wisconsin, where 52% of voters said they would back Sanders, while 42% said they would cast their ballot for Trump. In Pennsylvania, 51% of likely voters said they would support Sanders, while 43% would vote for Trump.
All three swing states solidified Trump’s victory over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election.
“I don’t think it’s any generic Democrat fits the mold here,” Sanders pollster Ben Tulchin told NBC News. “Trump is vulnerable here, but it has to be for the right kind of Democrat who has real strengths and can win these three states.”
“I don’t think any other candidate is as well positioned as Bernie is in these three states,” Tulchin said.
The poll was conducted from April 14-18 with a sample size of 400 likely voters in the 2020 general election in each state. The margin of error for the survey is plus or minus 4.9 percentage points.
