Donald Trump leads Joe Biden in five of six swing states

The President trails his probable Republican opponent in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania.

Donald Trump campaigns in Kissimmee, Florida, at the weekend. Picture: AFP

Donald Trump leads President Joe Biden in five key swing states with 12 months until the election, a poll suggests.

Mr Biden trails his probable Republican opponent in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania.

Of the six most important battleground states from the past two elections, the President is ahead only in Wisconsin, where he leads by two percentage points, according to the poll by The New York Times and Siena College.

The six states are expected to be key again next year. Overall, Mr Trump leads Mr Biden by 10 points in Nevada, six in Georgia, five in Arizona and Michigan and four in Pennsylvania.

Across the states, all of which were won by Mr Biden in 2020, he trails Mr Trump by an average of 44 to 48 per cent.

If the results were repeated next year, Mr Trump would regain the White House.

Mr Biden, who turns 81 this month, is considered too old to lead the country by 71 per cent of voters. That opinion was shared by every demographic and geographic group in the poll, including 54 per cent of Biden supporters.

Mr Trump, 77, is considered too old by 39 per cent of the electorate. Sixty-two per cent said Mr Biden did not have the “mental sharpness” required to run the country.

Amid high inflation and a cost of living crisis, voters said they trusted Mr Trump on the economy over Mr Biden by a margin of 59 to 37 per cent.

Mr Trump, who in part rose to power by touting his business acumen, is expected to testify overnight on Monday at a civil trial in which he is accused of inflating the value of his assets. Eric, his son, said that his father was “very fired up”.

In common with his conduct throughout his four criminal trials, Mr Trump has attacked the judge in the civil trial.

The former president has described Arthur Engoron, the New York judge, as “unhinged” and a “Trump-hating, radical left, Democrat operative”.

Judge Engoron has responded by slapping Trump with two fines – one for $US5000, another for $US10,000 – when he ruled the one-time reality television star had violated a partial gag order imposed after he verbally abused the judge’s clerk on social media.

The Times