2020 election polls: Donald Trump and Joe Biden's key battleground state polling numbers

These states could decide the outcome of the election

President Donald Trump has a proverbial mountain to climb if he is to defeat his Democrat challenger Joe Biden at November's election. The incumbent is behind by 8.5 percentage points in national polls and has just a day to turn things around to avoid joining only a handful of presidents not to secure a second term in office.

But as then-Democrat nominee Hilary Clinton found to her cost in the 2016 race, winning the popular vote does not always translate into an election victory. Mr Trump's path to reelection has narrowed significantly over the past few months, but America's electoral college voting system means he still has a chance of victory, albeit a small one.

Heading down the final stretch, both candidates will be focusing their campaigning efforts in a number of key swing or "battleground" states as they seek to secure the 270 electoral college votes needed to enter the White House. Below is a breakdown of those pivotal states: the number of electoral college votes up for grabs in each, how they voted in 2016 and what the polls are saying this time around. Polling numbers will be updated on a daily basis.*

Arizona

Electoral college votes: 11

2016 result: Trump win

What the polls say this year: Biden 48.8% v Trump 45.7%

Republicans have won the traditionally conservative state of Arizona every year since George W. Bush was elected president in 2000. Mr Trump won the state in 2016 but only secured some 90,000 more votes than the then-Democrat nominee, Hilary Clinton.

Women voters in Arizona have been deserting the president because of his aggressive approach to politics, while elder residents are unhappy with his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Still, the polls suggest the race for Arizona will go down to the wire.

Florida

Electoral college votes: 29

2016 result: Trump win

What the polls say this year: Biden 48.9% v Trump 46.5%

Florida is one of the most important states on the electoral map. America's third-most populous state has been a toss-up over the past few decades, choosing Richard Nixon in 1972, Bill Clinton in 1996 and Barack Obama in 2008 and 2016, before swinging back to the Republicans in 2016. 

Again, Mr Trump's victory in the Sun Belt state was narrow - he secured just 100,000 more votes than Ms Clinton. If Mr Biden wins the state back for the Democrats, then it is difficult to see a path to victory for the president because of the large number of electoral college votes he will lose out on. 

Georgia

Electoral college votes: 16

2016 result: Trump win

What the polls say this year: Biden 48.2% v Trump 47.1%

One of America's original colonies, Georgia has turned red every year since Mr Clinton swept to power in 1992. The Georgia contest is shaping up to be one of the closest in this year's election and polling shows the state currently on a knife-edge.  A win for Mr Biden would almost certainly put him in the White House, although winning the state is not critical to the former VP’s chances of securing victory.

Michigan

Electoral college votes: 16

2016 result: Trump win

What the polls say this year: Biden 51.1% v Trump 43.1%

Mr Trump ended a two-decades-long Democrat stranglehold on Michigan with victory in 2016. But Mr Biden commands a strong lead in the Rust Belt state. The president visited the state on 26 October with a Make America Great Again rally in Washington, but it may have been too little too late. Mr Biden has held a considerable lead in Michigan since March.  

Minnesota

Electoral college votes: 10

2016 result: Clinton win

What the polls say this year: Biden 51.8% v Trump 42.5%

Another Rust Belt state whose economic fortunes have suffered as a result of globalisation, Minnesota stuck with the Democrats in 2016 - but only just. Ms Clinton secured just over 40,000 more votes than her rival. Team Trump will be hoping for a win in Michigan this time around, putting an end to the Democrats domination of the upper midwest state.

North Carolina

Electoral college votes: 15

2016 result: Trump win

What the polls say this year: Biden 48.7% v Trump 46.9%

North Carolina has voted for a Republican candidate at every presidential election since 1976 - except for 2008 when the state Mr Obama. Polling shows a tight race in North Carolina, which has been heavily targetted by team Trump. The president has been scheduled to hold at least two more rallies there before election day.

Ohio

Electoral college votes: 18

2016 result: Trump win

What the polls say this year: Biden 47.1% v Trump 47.5%

Ohio has traditionally been a bellwether state and whoever emerges victorious in the state usually enters the White House. It is the only key battleground state where pollsters give the president a lead over Mr Biden. Mr Obama won there in 2012 and 2012 as did Clinton before him in 1992 and 1996. Mr Biden will be hoping to win back the trust of voters whose livelihoods have been decimated by disappearing industrial jobs.

Pennsylvania

Electoral college votes: 20

2016 result: Trump win

What the polls say this year: Biden 50.2% v Trump 45.0%

Analysts say that Mr Biden's home state of Pennsylvania could be key in deciding the outcome of November's election. Both candidates themselves have told campaign rallies that whoever wins the northeastern state may well end up in the White House. Mr Trump just about carried the state in 2016. He won by fewer than 10,000 votes. Barring a major upset, it looks like Pennsylvanian's are set to choose one of their own.  

Wisconsin

Electoral college votes: 10

2016 result: Trump win

What the polls say this year: Biden 51.9% v Trump 43.7%

In 2016, Democrats failed to win Wisconsin for the first time since 1984 when incumbent Ronald Regan defeated Walter Mondale.   Mr Trump secured victory in the Badger State with just over 20,000 more votes than Ms Clinton. Back in March, the two candidates were neck-and-neck on just over 46 percentage points each. But Mr Biden edged in front around April and hasn't looked back since.

*All polling figures have been taken from FiveThirtyEight.com, a polling analysis website which tracks both state and nationwide polls.