Anti-Trump Republican pollster Sarah Longwell says that a regular focus group she's been holding with undecided women voters took a major turn this week after President Donald Trump refused to commit to having a peaceful transition of power.
During an appearance on The Bulwark's "Secret Podcast," Longwell explained that she thought that her focus group would spend a lot of time discussing the Supreme Court vacancy sparked by Ruth Bader Ginsburg's passing, but instead immediately began talking about Trump's comments on the peaceful transition of power.
"Multiple people immediately jump in to say that they're leaning more towards Joe Biden," Longwell said. "Then it was revealed that the big thing impacting their thinking had nothing to do with the courts -- it was Donald Trump's refusal to state that he would accommodate a peaceful transition of power."
She went on to say that, while her focus group voters didn't believe this represented a catastrophic threat to democracy, she nonetheless said they were shocked by his statements.
"He has pushed pretty much half of the undecideds... into Biden leaners," she said.
She said that at the end of her previous session, very few people would say that they felt committed to supporting either candidate, but this time "more than half the group" said they'd back Biden if the election were held tomorrow.