NEWS
Biden Weakest Against Nikki Haley in Hypothetical 2024 Matchup, According to Recent Poll
Courtesy of uhdems/Instagram
President Joe Biden’s approval rating may not be strong enough to fend off a Republican challenger in the 2024 presidential election, based on recent polling showing his weakness in hypothetical matchups.
A CNN poll published Thursday found that nearly half of registered voters, 46%, say that any Republican nominee would be better than Biden in 2024.
A hypothetical matchup between former President Donald Trump and Biden shows voters almost evenly split inside the margin of error, with similar results against most of the other Republican contenders, except for one: former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley beat Biden, with 49% to his 43%.
The poll, conducted by SSRS from August 25-31 among 1,259 registered voters, has an overall margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 points.
Biden’s overall approval rating stood at just 39%. Majorities of Democratic and Democrat-leaning voters said they were concerned Biden’s age would affect his competence (56%), his ability to win in 2024 (60%), and his ability to serve a full term is re-elected (61%).
“Candidate age is a dominant issue in the 2024 election, with significant majorities raising concerns about President Biden’s age, stating that he is too old to run again or supporting age limits for members of Congress,” Bradley Schurman, founder and CEO of the demographic strategy firm, The Super Age, which helps public and private-sector organizations navigate disruptive population change.
“Age is never a good measure of an individual’s ability to run for political office. However, voters have every right to judge a candidate based on their ability to serve, including their cognitive health, which can impair decision-making,” Schurman said.
Significant majorities of democratic-aligned voters under the age of 45 say that Biden does not inspire confidence (63%), Biden lacks the stamina and sharpness to serve effectively (64%), and that Biden has failed to improve the economy (64%).
“There are several forces at play here but in the end the continued strength of former President Trump, despite the indictments, in the Republican primary protects President Biden in the general election from these vulnerabilities and concerns,” said communications and public relations consultant Josh Vlasto, who previously worked for former N.Y. Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York.
“Even though there are fewer of them than ever, moderate Republicans are not comfortable with Trump becoming president again, and so if Trump is the nominee, the majority of voters will put their concerns about Biden aside in order to keep Trump out of office — just as they put these same concerns aside in 2020,” Vlasto said.
“However, if Trump is not the Republican nominee, President Biden’s weaknesses pose an existential threat to his candidacy and could wipe out support with moderate Democrats and Republicans alike,” Vlasto said.
TMX contributed to this article.
