New Poll Shows Liz Cheney Damaged Harris Campaign In Key Swing States

Former Wyoming Republican Rep. Liz Cheney attempted to deal a blow to President-elect Donald Trump by endorsing his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, during the 2024 presidential campaign.

However, her endorsement appeared to backfire, becoming what some compared to "the iceberg endorsing the Titanic," as it likely contributed to Trump securing critical victories in Pennsylvania and Michigan.

A new poll from Data for Progress reveals that Cheney’s decision to campaign with Vice President Harris in the final days of the election may have actually decreased voter enthusiasm among key demographics.

“The Cheney endorsement made nearly 3-in-10 independent Pennsylvania voters less enthusiastic about Harris’ campaign,” the firm reported.

The data also highlighted a significant messaging gap: "Voters believed Donald Trump would address this core issue of the economy more than Harris. Voters also heard more from Trump on economic issues than they did from Harris, and considered Trump to be the ‘change candidate.’ However, Trump’s own voters expect him to increase taxes on billionaires and big corporations, expand Medicare, and address kitchen table issues like corporate grocery price gouging and ‘junk fees.’ Together, these findings provide clarity about Harris’ campaign decisions — and Trump’s mandates moving forward.”

The poll underscored that Harris’ focus on campaigning alongside Cheney, rather than emphasizing her populist economic agenda, hurt her standing with voters.

“In Pennsylvania, Independents were 18 points more enthusiastic about Harris when she campaigned on economic issues, but 7 points less enthusiastic when she campaigned with Cheney — a 25-point swing,” the survey found. “In Michigan, the numbers were similar, with an 11-point increase in enthusiasm for economic issues and a 7-point decrease when Cheney joined her — an 18-point swing. Across both states, 70% of voters said Harris campaigning with Cheney either had no impact on their enthusiasm or made them less enthusiastic.”

The findings showed that voters, particularly Independents and Republicans in Pennsylvania and Michigan, ranked the economy as their top issue. This suggests that Harris’ decision to campaign with Cheney distracted from her economic messaging, which could have resonated more strongly with key audiences.

“By wide margins, Pennsylvania and Michigan Independents and Republicans — the audience Harris was looking to win over — said the economy was their top issue when voting,” the report stated. “This finding emphasizes why diverting resources to campaigning with Cheney in the final days, instead of doubling down on Harris’ messaging regarding popular economic issues, may have decreased enthusiasm for Harris among key voters.”

Meanwhile, President-elect Trump focused heavily on economic issues, a strategy that resonated with voters in these pivotal states.

“Overall, these findings underscore how central the economy and the economic pain of the past few years were in shaping voter decisions in Pennsylvania and Michigan,” the report concluded. “While Harris ran on a popular economic agenda, she was ultimately unable to convince voters that she, not Trump, would usher in the changes they wanted to see, lower prices, and challenge bad actors and special interests. However, most voters supported the policies Harris was running on, Trump voters included. Looking ahead, this polling has identified areas of overwhelming support for progressive, populist economic policies, suggesting that executing these policies should be a priority for the incoming administration.”

In a post-election statement quoted during a Morning Joe segment, former Rep. Cheney acknowledged Trump’s victory.

Co-host Mika Brzezinski read Cheney’s remarks: “Our nation’s democratic system functioned last night, and we have a new president-elect. All Americans are bound, whether we like the outcome or not, to accept the results of our elections.”

She continued, quoting Cheney: “We now have a special responsibility as citizens of the greatest nation on Earth to do everything we can to support and defend our Constitution, preserve the rule of law, and ensure that our institutions hold over these coming four years. Citizens across this country, our courts, members of the press, and those serving in our federal, state, and local governments must now be the guardrails of democracy.”