Jake Tapper was visibly stunned Tuesday night on CNN when David Chalian told him that there was a 20 point swing towards Donald Trump among independent viewers in Georgia.
Chalian reported that the early exit polls results in the Southern state showed contrasted sharply with 2020 results, when Joe Biden won independent voters in the state by nine points.
Tapper reacted with raised eyebrows and a moment of silence. “Wow, that is really significant, later adding, That independent swing is wild, it’s a huge swing.”
He went on to note that, as with polls closing on the East Coast, Kamala Harris was doing “slightly better” with young voters, but Trump had the edge in “non-college whites.”
At another moment in CNN’s coverage, Chalian related that “protecting democracy” was the “number one issue,” according to the exit poll of voters across the country, with 35% choosing it over abortion or other hot-button issues.
Chalian also noted the striking difference between Harris and Trump voters’ belief in the integrity of the election.
In response to the question, “Are you confident that elections are being conducted fairly and accurately in the United States?” 88%, or nearly nine out of 10 Harris voters expressed confidence while — after four years of conspiracy theories about the “stolen” presidential election, only 47% of Trump voters were similarly trusting, with 52% choosing not confident.”
As for whether voters across the country are concerned with violence and the chance of a repeat of the Jan. 6 2021 attack on the Capitol, 71% said they are worried, while 27% said they are not.
