JOE BIDEN and DONALD TRUMP are running neck and neck in recent 2024 polls (Shutterstock).

Assuming that Joe Biden and Donald Trump are again their party’s nominatee for president in 2024, who is favored to win?

That depends on which poll you read.

The political website FiveThirtyEight.com shows that in the last eight national polls taken since the start of April, Biden is “ahead” in five and Trump in three. However, the margins are slender: in the most recent survey putting Biden in the lead among likely voters – Redfield & Wilson Strategies – the sitting president is ahead 39-37 percent. The last poll putting the Trump ahead among registered voters –The Economist – has Trump leading 40-38 percent.

However, if the lineups were different, the races might also be. Biden has a 45 to 38 percent lead over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Trump leads Vice President Kamala Harris 43 to 38.

Pardon for killer of protester?

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is seeking to pardon Daniel Perry, a U.S. Army sergeant convicted of murdering a protester at a Black Lives Matter rally.

Abbott says the shooter was protected by “Stand Your Ground” laws; prosecutors claim there was no evidence that Garrett Foster pointed a weapon at him.

Also in the news … The State of Iowa has – perhaps temporarily – paused the policy of paying for abortions or contraceptives for victims of sexual assault ….

Sports: Angels lose lead and game

The Los Angeles Angels built a 6-0 lead against the Toronto Blue Jays but couldn’t hang on, losing 12-11 in 10 innings. Trailing 12-11 in the bottom of the 10th with the bases loaded and two out, Halo star Shohei Ohtani grounded out to end the game.

The loss dropped the Halos (5-4) into a tie for first place in the American League West with the Texas Rangers. Hunter Renfroe led a robust Angels attack (13 hits) with a home run, a double and four RBIs. The Angels got four home runs in the loss.

The Angels are back in action Monday hosting the Washington Nationals  (3-7).

The Los Angeles Dodgers fell to 5-5 with an 11-6 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in Phoenix on Sunday.  The D-backs outhit the Blue Crew 16 to seven in building an early 11-3 lead.

J.D. Martinez had the best day for the Dodgers, going 2-for-4 and driving in two runs  and scoring twice. Michael Grove (0-1) had a rough outing, working 3.1 innings and giving up 12 hits and nine earned runs.

With the loss, LAD is third in the NL West, behind the D-backs (6-4) and the San Diego Padres (5-4). Next up is a start Tuesday of a series against the Giants in San Francisco.

The Los Angeles Lakers (43-39) moved to within one game of qualifying for the NBA Playoffs with Sunday’s 128-117 win over the Utah Jazz at Crypto.Com Arena. LeBron James scored 36 points to lead the team and six other players scored in double figures. They will close out the regular season on Tuesday hosting the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Los Angeles Clippers (44-38) clinched the number five slot in the playoffs for the NBA Western Conference with a 119-114 win over the Phoenix Suns.

Norman Powell had 29 points and Kawhi Leonard had 25 points and 15 rebounds. The Clips will open the playoffs with a first round matchup with the Suns (45-37) starting on Sunday, April 16.

Weather: A cloudy week ahead

The sun will be evasive in the West Orange County area for the coming week, with cloudy and partly cloudy conditions though Friday. The forecast for Monday is for partly cloudy skies with a daytime high of 76 and an overnight low of 53. Tuesday should be similar but a bit cooler with a high of 72 (55). Wednesday will be full-on cloudy with a high of 68 (55).

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