Donald Trump Hails ‘Shining Star’ Herschel Walker After Latest Polls

Former President Donald Trump has described U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker as a “shining star” after a series of new polls showed him ahead of Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock.

Trump took to his Truth Social platform on Friday and shared a screenshot showing three recent polls that found Walker, whom Trump has endorsed, beating Warnock in the Georgia Senate race.

“Herschel is looking good—a shining star for Georgia,” the former president said.

The polls in question showed Walker, a former football star, with a narrow lead over Warnock, who scored a surprise victory over Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler in a special election in January.

An InsiderAdvantage/FOX 5 Atlanta poll showed Walker with 47 percent to Warnock’s 44 percent, while an Emerson College poll found Walker on 46 percent to Warnock’s 44 percent.

And a Trafalgar Group poll found Walker leading with 48 percent support to the Democrat’s 47 percent.

All three pollsters enjoy high ratings from poll tracker FiveThirtyEight and their findings have moved their recent analysis. Though they still rate the race as a toss-up, it’s now closer than it was on Friday.

FiveThirtyEight gives both Walker and Warnock 50 chances in 100 to win the race, suggesting the contest is now a dead heat.

On Friday, FiveThirtyEight gave Warnock 52 chances in 100 of winning, while Walker had 48 chances in 100 to be elected to the Senate.

The most recent polls suggest Walker’s campaign is picking up momentum with just two months to go before the midterm elections, but it’s likely to be a close race.

The University of Virginia (UVA) Crystal Ball forecast rates the Georgia Senate race as a toss-up – one of just two races their analysis currently rates as so equal. The other is Nevada, where Democratic Senator Catherine Cortez Masto is seeking re-election in a race with Republican Adam Laxalt.

Georgia has long been considered a deep red state but Democrats scored upset victories there in the 2020 presidential election and in two U.S. Senate elections in January, 2021.

Democrats’ chances in the upcoming midterm elections appear to have improved in recent weeks and they are currently slightly favored to win the Senate in FiveThirtyEight’s forecast, while UVA rates the overall battle for the Senate as a toss-up.

UVA recently moved key Senate races in Pennsylvania and Arizona to lean Democratic in what may be another good sign for Democrats, while President Joe Biden’s approval rating has been on an upward trend.

However, Republicans are still favored to win control of the House of Representatives.

Former football player and political candidate Herschel Walker interacts with former president of the United States Donald Trump prior to Game Four of the World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves Truist Park on October 30, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. Three recent polls show Walker leading Senator Raphael Warnock. MICHAEL ZARRILLI/GETTY