Biden and Trump neck and neck in three Southern states: poll

Three Southern battleground states appear to be toss-ups, according to new polling, with only a week left before the presidential election.

A CBS News survey released Sunday morning shows Democratic nominee Joe Biden and President Trump neck and neck among likely voters in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina. Biden currently leads Trump by 2 points in Florida, 50 to 48 percent, and by 4 points in North Carolina, 51 to 47 percent. They are tied in Georgia at 49 percent. 

The polling data shows Biden leading among those who have already cast their ballots, while Trump leads among those who haven’t voted yet. Sixty-one percent of people who already voted said they voted for Biden, while 59 percent of those who haven’t voted yet said they were in favor of Trump.

CBS News notes that white voters have significantly shifted toward Biden, especially those with college degrees. Biden now claims a larger share of that group than Hillary Clinton did in 2016. Trump won the demographic with double-digit leads in all three states four years ago.

Senate races are also competitive in two of the states, according to the poll. In North Carolina, Democratic challenger Cal Cunningham has established a 6-point lead, 49 to 43 percent, over incumbent Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.). Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.) is currently leading Democrat Jon Ossoff by only 1 point, 47 to 46 percent.

The margin of error for the three states ranged from 3 to 4 percentage points. The poll of more than 1,000 likely voters in each state was conducted from Oct 20 to Oct. 23.