The argument against Donald Trump's "electability" has taken another hit, with a shock poll finding the former president trouncing Joe Biden in the swing states.

Biden has a one-point edge with all voters, but in the states where it counts, he's far behind. The Echelon Insights poll found that 48 percent of voters in swing states prefer Trump, while 41 percent prefer Biden.

Trump solidifies lead

The poll appears to belie the conventional wisdom that Trump is too controversial a figure to appeal to the voters who decide elections in America's increasingly polarized environment.

Trump's lead in the primary has also expanded continuously for months, leaving the former president with a sizeable double-digit lead.

The Echelon poll found Trump with 49 percent support among primary voters. Ron DeSantis claimed 16 percent, a stark drop compared to months past, with anti-woke businessman and Trump defender Vivek Ramaswamy closing in at 10 percent.

The poll found DeSantis trailing Biden by three points with all voters, and leading Biden by just one point among swing staters.

Spoiler?

As he seeks re-election, Biden faces a number of vulnerabilities, including mounting questions about his age and his family's sordid overseas business dealings - and a public that is skeptical of the sweetheart plea deal his son received from the Justice Department. 

Another potential X factor is the candidacy of university professor Cornel West, who is running to Biden's left. Many speculate West could play the role of spoiler, and the Echelon poll bears that out.

With West in the running, Trump leads Biden by one point with voters overall and his swing state advantage grows to eight points.

"In a close election, Cornel West could well be a spoiler," David B. Cohen, a political science professor at the University of Akron in Ohio, said.

"There is no evidence to suggest that the 2024 election will be anything but a very close election decided by razor-thin margins, which means that a third-party candidate could have an outsized influence in the result," he added.

Tide turning

Trump lost to Biden in 2020 by razor-thin margins in a handful of swing states - and that was with the systematic suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop scandal and radically different voting procedures because of COVID-19.

Of course, nothing is settled, but the 2024 election is shaping up to be a closer contest than many pundits suggest.

Is that why Biden is trying to have his opponent sent to prison?