Tech Professor: Candidates Will Focus On Swing States

With less than two months before the November 5th presidential election, a Tech Professor says Kamala Harris and Donald Trump will continue to focus on swing states.

Political Science Professor Lori Maxwell said over the past two weeks constant shifts are showing in swing states such as Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and Arizona. Maxwell said these states are toss-ups and can ultimately decide who wins the election.

“If it is not a landslide election which it is currently looking that way then it can come down to really just a few areas within these key swing states,” Maxwell said. “And so I think that both the parties have focused their initiatives there.”

Maxwell said the media often paints a horserace look to the election, with constant polling data. Maxwell said the misconception of the presidential race makes it difficult to predict who will win the election.

“We are still early on as we do have both the conventions behind us,” Maxwell said. “Polls can take a bump or a slight decrease based on the debate which is pending September 10th, and so I think that we have this convergence of both the federalism approach with the focus on the swing states but also a more myopic view of the media which just wants to show us who is leading at any given point in time.”

Maxwell said usually after televised debates poll numbers shift whether it’s in favor or not in favor of the candidate. Maxwell said with time running out on negotiations to make the debate happen Trump and Harris could be putting independent voters on the fence.

“I do think that in a close race, it could be detrimental to Trump if he does not choose to debate,” Maxwell said. “I also think interestingly enough though there is potential peril for Harris as well, because as she continues to increase in popularity a political scientist Richard Waterman articulated the notation of an expectations gap, which is the difference between what the public expects of a presidential candidate and what they can actually accomplish.”

Maxwell referenced the 2000 presidential election between former Texas Governor George W. Bush and former Democratic Vice President Al Gore. Maxwell said going into the debate the public had high expectations for Gore while low expectations for Bush. Maxwell said the debate helped Bush rise in the polls and ultimately led to Bush winning the election by a slim margin.