Poll: BLM riots 'boosting' Trump among voters

Joe Biden appearing in a Pro-Trump ad asking if he has dementia (YouTube screenshot)

A new poll of likely voters indicates the Black Lives Matter riots are boosting President Trump's chances of winning the November election.

The The poll by the Washington based think tank Democracy Institute and the Sunday Express of London found that while both Trump and presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden have 47% support, Trump would win in the Electoral College by 309 to 229, because he is on course to win the swing states of Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

The Expres said the "fallout from the Black Lives Matter protests in the U.S. offers Donald Trump his best chance of winning the presidential election."

On key issues:

A huge 71% of respondents prefer "all lives matter" to "black lives matter."
And 74% disapproved of rioters pulling down statues of historic figures.

Seventy-seven percent disagreed with the assertion supported by many Democratic politicians that Mount Rushmore "is racist."

Further, the poll found 59% approved of the president's handling of the riots and protests but 40% want him to be tougher. Sixty percent think Biden has not been critical enough.

Two of three prefer the president's law and order message.

Trump, compared to previous Republican presidents, still is polling high among black voters, with 35% support, and 34% from Hispanics.

"Worse still is Mr. Biden's mental health after some stumbling performances and public concerns that he may be suffering from the early stages of dementia," the report said, citing the 55% who believe he has cognitive problems.

Trump said in his July 3 speech at Mount Rushmore: "There is a new far-left fascism that demands absolute allegiance. If you do not speak its language, perform its rituals, recite its mantras, and follow its commandments then you will be censored, banished, blacklisted, persecuted, and punished. Not gonna happen to us."

Patrick Basham, head of the Democracy Institute, said Biden can make it a competitive election if he succeeds in avoiding even one "senior moment."

If he does forget "what he's saying, or where he is, or the question posed to him, his chances of beating Trump will be somewhere between slim and none."

The Express noted the "silent support" for the president is a factor.

"While 77% of Trump voters are 'enthusiastic' compared to 43% of Biden voters, 66% of Trump voters would not admit how they are voting to a friend or relative compared to just one third of Biden backers," the Express said.

The poll was done July 1-3 on landline and cell telephones, sampling 1,500 likely voters.