A Trump Manhattan hush money conviction would punch a hole in his election hopes: report

With Donald Trump's so-called "hush money" trial in Manhattan likely to be the only one of many he is facing that might be decided before November, there is compelling evidence that a guilty verdict would cripple any chance that the former president has of being re-elected.

That is the takeaway from a poll commissioned by Politico that shows a tight race between the multi-indicted former president and President Joe Biden would strongly tilt to a win for the Democrats.

As Politico's Anhkush Khadori wrote, Trump could face the dual threat of a criminal conviction with jail time attached along with losing his bid to return to the Oval Office, from which he would be able to kill his federal indictments.

ALSO READ: 11 ways Trump doesn’t become president

A great deal of that hinges on the prosecution of the former president by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg who has charged Trump over his payment of hush money in 2016 to adult actress Stormy Daniels in an effort to keep news of their affair hidden from the public as he ran for president.

According to the polling commissioned by Politico, a guilty verdict would lead to an exodus of voters — independents mostly — who would refuse to consider a vote for Trump.

The report notes, "Among those respondents who said that a conviction would influence their decision, the numbers were not good for Trump," adding, "By a more than 2-1 margin, respondents said that a conviction would make them less likely to support Trump (32 percent) as opposed to more likely (13 percent). Notably, more than a third of independents said it would reduce their likelihood to support Trump. Not surprisingly, the vast majority of respondents who said that a conviction would bolster their support were Republicans."

RELATED: Trump would be sentenced just before election if convicted in hush money case: attorney

While adding the caveat that there is no guarantee those feelings would hold until November, Politico is reporting that "the results may give hope to some Democrats worried about Biden’s reelection prospects this fall."

You can read more here.