Jake Tapper Shocked by ‘Wild’ Swing of Independent Voters Toward Trump in Georgia, CNN Reports

November 6, Atlanta, GA – CNN’s Jake Tapper and political analyst David Chalian were visibly shocked Tuesday night after exit polls showed former President Donald Trump with a substantial lead over Vice President Kamala Harris among independent voters in Georgia, a critical swing state.

CNN’s exit poll data revealed that Trump leads Harris by 11 points among Georgia’s independents, who comprise roughly 31% of the state’s electorate.

CNN’s Jake Tapper expressed his bewilderment over Georgia results with independent voters. CNN

“Trump is winning independents by 11 points,” Chalian announced, underscoring a dramatic shift since the 2020 election when President Joe Biden won Georgia’s independent voters by 9 points—a 20-point swing in Trump’s favour. “Wow,” Tapper reacted to the data, calling it “really significant.”

As the evening progressed, CNN’s Chris Wallace echoed Tapper’s sentiments, expressing surprise at the level of independent support for Trump. Wallace, remarking on Harris’s apparent need for “a miracle” to overcome Trump in the state, admitted to being “at a loss” over the shift.

Early returns from Georgia, reported by the Associated Press, showed Trump leading Harris with 52.3% of the vote to her 47%. However, bomb threats at several precincts led Georgia state courts to extend polling hours, which may delay final results in the state, which holds 16 pivotal Electoral College votes.

Georgia’s role in this election is especially significant, as Biden’s narrow 2020 win in the state marked the first Democratic victory there since 1992.