Ahead of Debate, Walz Is Viewed More Favorably Than Vance in Midwest, Polls Find

Gov. Tim Walz is viewed more favorably than Senator JD Vance by likely voters in Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin, according to New York Times/Siena College polls.

In the contest between Minnesota dad energy and “Hillbilly Elegy” energy, Midwestern voters appear to have a clear preference.

Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee, is viewed more favorably than his Republican counterpart, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, in three Midwestern states, according to polls from The New York Times and Siena College.

The polls, taken as the two men were preparing to face off in a debate on Tuesday, found that Mr. Walz was viewed favorably by 44 percent of likely voters in Ohio, Michigan and Wisconsin and unfavorably by 41 percent. Mr. Vance was viewed favorably by 42 percent of likely voters in those states and unfavorably by 48 percent, the polls found. Both men were chosen in part to appeal to voters in the Midwest.

Voters were more likely to say that Mr. Walz was honest, trustworthy, and caring than they were to say the same about Mr. Vance.

About half of voters said that Mr. Walz was “honest and trustworthy” and that he “cares about people like me,” and about a third of voters said those terms did not describe him well. Voters were both less likely to say those descriptors applied to Mr. Vance and much more likely to say those qualities did not describe him well.

Mr. Walz was the only candidate on either major presidential ticket with more supporters than detractors across the three states.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, was viewed favorably by 48 percent of likely voters in those states and unfavorably by 50 percent. And former President Donald J. Trump, the Republican nominee, was viewed favorably by 47 percent and unfavorably by 52 percent.

Mr. Vance’s numbers were best in his home state of Ohio, but even there he had more detractors than supporters, the poll found.

The poll found that 45 percent of likely Ohio voters had a favorable view of Mr. Vance, while 47 percent had an unfavorable one. (In recent weeks, Mr. Vance has spread false rumors that Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating household pets, drawing rebukes from city officials and from Ohio’s Republican governor, Mike DeWine.) Ohio was the only state where Mr. Walz had more detractors than supporters: He was viewed favorably by 41 percent and unfavorably by 42 percent.

Part of the difference in favorability may be accounted for by the fact that more voters have an opinion of Mr. Vance — the author of a memoir that was turned into a film — than they do of Mr. Walz. Overall, 16 percent of likely voters in the three states said that they either had not heard of Mr. Walz or did not know what their opinion of him was; only 10 percent said the same about Mr. Vance.

The favorability divide between the two vice-presidential candidates is in line with what other recent polls have found. An average of national polls by the site FiveThirtyEight found that as of Sept. 26, Mr. Walz was viewed favorably by roughly 40 percent of voters and unfavorably by 36 percent, while Mr. Vance was viewed favorably by 35 percent and unfavorably by 46 percent.

That divide provides opportunities — and challenges — for both men as they prepare to square off next week in New York for their first and only debate, which will be sponsored by CBS News. It should give more Americans a chance to get acquainted with the candidates and form opinions of them, for better or worse.