A new Quinnipiac University National poll finds the presidential race “too close to call” — Hillary Clinton 42 percent to Donald Trump’s 40 percent.  This is an improvement for Trump from last month’s Quinnipiac poll which had Hillary ahead of  The Donald 45 – 41 percent. With third party candidates are included it remains deadlocked:

• Clinton – 39%
• Trump  – 37%
• Gary Johnson (Libertarian Party) – 8%
• Jill Stein (Green Party) – 4%

The poll also found that voters say neither candidate would be a good president and that the campaign has increased hatred and prejudice in the nation. Respondents said the Donald will not be a good president by a margin of 58 – 35 percent and neither would Hillary 53 – 43 percent. Sixty-one percent say the 2016 election has increased the level of hatred and prejudice in the U.S., — 67 percent of those blame the Trump campaign and 16 percent blame the Clinton campaign.

Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll said, “It would be difficult to imagine a less flattering from-the-gut reaction to Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton”:

Voters find themselves in the middle of a mean-spirited, scorched earth campaign between two candidates they don’t like. And they don’t think either candidate would be a good president.

The new poll was conducted June 21 – 27, and has a margin of error of +/- 2.4 percent. Live interviewers call land lines and cell phones.