Former Vice President Joe Biden holds a 6 point lead over President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania according to new polling from FOX43/Susquehanna Polling and Research. 

48% of registered or likely Pennsylvania voters polled said they would either definitely or probably vote for Biden for president, while 42% said that they would definitely or probably vote for a second term of Trump, while 8% said that they were unsure. Biden’s lead is beyond the margin of error in this poll. 

Although Trump’s numbers are a bit stronger in the FOX43 viewing area in Central Pennsylvania, with the president only trailing Biden 46-44, it still is a cause for concern because Susquehanna P&R President Jim Lee notes that the area is “still majority Republican, which Trump carried in 2016.” 

Biden’s relatively strong numbers in the midstate may also raise some alarm bells for Rep. Scott Perry’s (R-York) reelection bid in the 10th District. Perry’s race is rated by various national outlets as one of the closest races to watch in 2020, while Democrats have his seat as one of their top targets in the state. 

The Real Clear Politics Average shows Biden besting Trump by 6.7 points in Pennsylvania. This FOX43/SP&R poll remains consistent with the current RCP average, while Biden’s largest lead comes from a Fox News poll released yesterday showing the Scranton native with an 8 point lead in the state and the closest results from a Morning Call/Muhlenberg College poll in mid-February showing Biden and Trump deadlocked at 47-47.

Wolf Receives High Marks for COVID-19 Response 

Mirroring some of the results from a Fox News poll released yesterday, a significant majority of Pennsylvanians approve of Gov. Tom Wolf’s handling of the coronavirus outbreak. 

68% of registered or likely Pennsylvania voters polled said that they approve of Wolf’s managing of the coronavirus, while 18% disapprove, and 13% said that they are unsure. Wolf receives nearly identical results in the FOX43 viewing area of Central PA with 68% approving of his handling of the coronavirus, while 16% disapprove, and 15% said that they are unsure. 

84% polled said that they have complied with all of the federal guidelines for social distancing, while 14% said that they have complied with some, ignored others, followed by 1% that said they did not comply, and 1% that said they prefer not to answer. 

A wide majority, 83% polled statewide, said that people should not be allowed in restaurants for dine-in services, which follows Wolf’s order, while 16% polled said that people should be allowed to go to restaurants for dine-in service even though they are open only for carry-out or delivery service. 

While Wolf has recently announced his plans to start reopening areas of the state on May 8, he receives a mixed bag of numbers for a few of his orders. 

43% polled said that non-essential businesses should be allowed to reopen either immediately or at the beginning of May, while 38% said that they should remain closed indefinitely, and 18% saying that they are not sure. 

Registered or likely Pennsylvania voters were split on Wolf’s order to release approximately 1,500-1,800 prisoners deemed “non-violent” and transferred to either home confinement or community correction facilities as a way to slow the spread of COVID-19 among the prison population. 42% polled said that they support Wolf’s order, while 43% said that they opposed this order, and 15% said that they are not sure. 

This overall poll, surveying 693 Pennsylvania voters, collected data between April 14 to April 20, has a margin of error of +/-3.7% at the 95% confidence level.

The full data can be found here.