President Biden leads former President Donald Trump among registered voters despite his debate flop on June 27, besting any potential alternative Democratic nominee — including Vice President Kamala Harris, according to a new poll.
The NPR/PBS News/Marist College national poll released Friday found 50% of registered voters nationwide support Biden’s 2024 candidacy, while 48% back Trump in a head-to-head matchup. Just 2% remain undecided.
The 81-year-old incumbent has gained on last month’s survey by the outlet, which saw him and Trump tied at 49% among registered voters head-to-head.
Should Biden abandon his re-election campaign, Harris, 59, would receive the same 50% support from registered voters — but Trump would get 49% when not facing his 2020 opponent again.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has defended the president in the wake of his debate debacle, fares the same against Trump as Biden (50%-48%).
And Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who has also defended Biden while saying it wouldn’t hurt for the president to be evaluated for his mental fitness, would tie Trump at 49%.
The narrow margins in the popular vote would likely mean Trump, 78, has enough support in key states to eke out a victory in the Electoral College.
In a hypothetical six-way presidential race, Trump is in the lead with 43% support from registered voters, followed by Biden (42%), independent candidates Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (8%) and Cornel West (3%), and Green Party candidate Jill Stein (2%).
Libertarian candidate Chase Oliver fails to crack 1% in the poll.
Among voters who said they are planning on casting a ballot in November, Trump and Biden are tied at 45% apiece.
The Marist poll results, along with a Thursday survey conducted by Ipsos for ABC News and the Washington Post, are likely to give ammunition to Biden and allies who insist the president should stay in the race.
However, the White House has been hemorrhaging support from party insiders, mega-donors and senior congressional Democrats since his scattered debate performance against Trump.
The president also was unable to allay concerns by during an hour-long press conference Thursday night, during which he similarly stumbled over his words — and even mixed up the name of his vice president with his chief political opponent.
“Look, I wouldn’t have picked Vice President Trump to be vice president if I think she’s not qualified to be president,” Biden said to groans from some journalists at the annual NATO summit, just hours after he had introduced Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as “President Putin.”
Three more House Democrats have come forward since the “big boy” press conference, as White House staff had called it, to urge the oldest-ever president to bow out.
“The 2024 election will define the future of American democracy, and we must put forth the strongest candidate possible to confront the threat posed by Trump’s promised MAGA authoritarianism. I no longer believe that is Joe Biden,” said Intelligence Committee ranking member Jim Himes (D-Conn.).
That’s a move supported by two-thirds of Americans and more than half of those who say they’ll vote for Biden if he is on the ballot Nov. 5, according to the ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos survey.
At least one House Democrat on Thursday also suggested Harris would be the best option if Biden withdraws.
“VP Harris is on fire. She’s vetted, tested, and has been Democrats’ strongest messenger throughout this campaign. She’s next up if we need her, and we might. Let me be very clear: if/when President Biden passes the torch, I’m all-in for Kamala Harris!” Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) posted on X.
The Biden campaign has reportedly been conducting internal polls pitting Harris against Trump, with some officials cautioning that the president “needs to drop out” since “no one involved in the effort thinks he has a path.”