Utah appears to have moved safely into Republican Donald Trumps column with less than a week to go until Election Day.
A new Heat Street/Rasmussen Reports telephone and online survey of Likely Utah Voters finds Trump with 42% support to Democrat Hillary Clintons 31%. Republican-turned-Independent candidate Evan McMullin has faded to 21%. Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson earns three percent (3%) of the vote. Two percent (2%) like some other candidate in the race, and another two percent (2%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
Last week, it was Trump 32%, McMullin 29%, Clinton 28%. The week before that, Trump held a negligible 30% lead over McMullin (29%) and Clinton (28%).
But as in other parts of the country, Utah Republicans appear to be coming home to Trump as his race with Clinton tightens following the announcement that the FBI has reopened its investigation of her mishandling of classified documents. GOP vice presidential nominee Mike Pence visited Utah last week, and popular Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz has announced publicly he is backing Trump after all.
A week ago, it was Trump 47%, McMullin 38% among GOP voters in Utah. The latest survey finds Trump ahead 63% to 27% among Republican voters. Utah hasnt supported a Democratic presidential candidate since 1964, but an upset win by McMullin, a former Republican congressional staffer who says he is the real conservative in the race, could cost Trump much needed electoral votes in a close national contest.