Hillary Clinton's swing state leads are seriously slipping

Hillary Clinton just lost her leads in two key battleground states, a poll by Quinnipiac University out Wednesday revealed. While Clinton led Donald Trump in Florida by 8 points just a month ago, she now lags behind the presumptive GOP nominee by 3 points. In Pennsylvania, a state which Politico noted hasn't voted for a Republican in the presidential election since 1988, Trump is ahead 43 percent to 41 percent. Clinton previously led there by 1 point.
Clinton's slip in these two critical states suggests the race might be closer than indicated by national polls, which forecast that Clinton has a comfortable "mid-single-digit advantage over Trump," Politico reports. Or, as Quinnipiac pollster Peter Brown suggested, Clinton's dip may just have to do with recent events. "While there is no definite link between Clinton's drop in Florida and the U.S. Justice Department decision not to prosecute her for her handling of emails, she has lost ground to Trump on questions which measure moral standards and honesty," Brown said in a press release.
The poll was conducted from June 30 through July 11. In Florida and Pennsylvania, the margin of error is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Tariffs were supposed to drive inflation. Why hasn’t that happened?
Talking Points Businesses' planning ahead helped. But uncertainty still looms.
-
How can you find a financial adviser you trust?
the explainer Four ways to detect professionals who will act in your best interest
-
8 gifts for the host that does the most
The Week Recommends Show your appreciation with a thoughtful present
-
Supreme Court weighs court limits amid birthright ban
speed read President Trump's bid to abolish birthright citizenship has sparked questions among federal judges about blocking administration policies
-
Gabbard fires intelligence chiefs after Venezuela report
speed read Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has fired the top two officials leading the National Intelligence Council
-
Trump vows to lift Syria sanctions
speed read The move would help the new government stabilize the country following years of civil war
-
Senate rejects Trump's Library of Congress takeover
speed read Congress resisted the president's attempts to control 'the legislative branch's premier research body'
-
Hamas frees US hostage in deal sidelining Israel
speed read Edan Alexander, a 21-year-old soldier, was the final living US citizen held by the militant group
-
White Afrikaners land in US as Trump-declared refugees
speed read An exception was made to Trump's near-total ban on admitting refugees for the white South Africans
-
Qatar luxury jet gift clouds Trump trip to Mideast
speed read Qatar is said to be presenting Trump with a $400 million plane, which would be among the biggest foreign gifts ever received by the US government
-
Trump taps Fox News' Pirro for DC attorney post
speed read The president has named Fox News host Jeanine Pirro to be the top federal prosecutor for Washington, replacing acting US Attorney Ed Martin