A new poll shows Trump and Harris neck and neck nationally and in battlegrounds

With less than two weeks to go before Election Day, CNBC's latest national poll comes to a presidential contest between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris both nationally and in key battleground states, with Trump leading on economic issues and Harris leading on character issues Honesty and the suitability to be president have the edge.

In CNBC's quarterly All-America Economic Survey, Trump has support from 48% of registered voters, while Harris has 46% – a two-point difference well within the poll's margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.

This narrow two-point lead for Trump is unchanged from the CNBC poll in August, and it is essentially unchanged from the nationwide NBC News poll earlier this month, conducted by the same two nonpartisan pollsters, which put the candidates at 48 each % were equal.

Meanwhile, an oversample of registered voters residing in the seven key battleground states — Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — shows Trump leading Harris by just one point in those states combined, 48% to 47 % – again well within the error limit.

The pollsters conducting the CNBC poll say inflation remains a strong factor in shaping this election. 63% of national voters said they feel their family's income falls short of the cost of living, and nearly half of voters named it one of their top income issues for the election – an increase compared to previous CNBC -Polls.

“Even though the data shows that inflation has slowed in theory, over the last three quarters it has become more important, not less important, in people's minds,” Democratic pollster Jay Campbell of Hart Research Associates told CNBC. (Campbell is conducting the poll with Republican Micah Roberts of Public Opinion Strategies.)

Harris is a leader in fitness and honesty; Trump is ahead on economic issues

When it comes to issues and the president's qualities, the poll shows Harris leading Trump by 13 points nationally when asked which candidate has the mental and physical fitness necessary to become president and that she is on the question whether she is honest and trustworthy is 10 points ahead.

However, Trump has a 7-point lead over Harris nationally when it comes to which candidate is better at strengthening the economy in their communities. Trump also has an 8-point lead on taxes and corporations and a 9-point lead on the issue of supporting small businesses.

The poll also found that 42% of registered voters believe they would be better off financially if Trump wins, compared to 24% who believe they would be better off financially if Harris wins. Another 29% of voters say their financial situation will not change in any way.

I asked another question: Which candidate would be better at bringing positive change to the country? – 42% of registered voters nationwide are voting for Harris, while 40% are voting for Trump. But neither number is enough to win the presidency, and the race could ultimately be decided by two other groups that have very different judgments on the issue.

Another 5% of voters said they believed both Harris and Trump would bring positive change. And another 9% of voters were pessimistic that neither Harris nor Trump would bring positive change as the next president.

Comparing the popularity of Trump and Harris

Additionally, the CNBC poll shows that Trump is slightly more popular than Harris nationally, with Trump's rating at 42% positive and 48% unfavorable (-6 net rating), while Harris is at 39% positive and 49% unfavorable (-10). .

But their ratings are nearly identical in the battleground states — 44% favorable, 49% unfavorable for Trump (-5), compared to Harris' 43% favorable, 48% unfavorable rating (-5).

A GOP lead in the fight for control of Congress

Finally, the poll looks at the battle for control of Congress, with 48% of registered voters preferring Republicans to control Congress while 44% want Democrats in power.

This 4-point Republican lead is identical in the battleground states, 48% for Republicans and 44% for Democrats.

The CNBC poll was conducted Oct. 15-19 among 1,000 registered voters and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. And the margin of error for the 586 eligible voters from Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin is plus or minus 4 percentage points.