Former President Donald Trump will have an advantage over President Joe Biden in the first presidential debate on Thursday.
According to a recent poll by The New York Times and Siena College, 48 percent of Americans would vote for Trump if the 2024 race were held now and just Trump and Biden were on the ticket.
Of the 1,226 registered voters surveyed, almost 42% stated they would support Biden, while 10% said they “don’t know” or “refused” to cast a ballot. Prior to the election in November, preliminary polling suggests that a straight-up contest between the two contenders for a second term in office is most likely to ensue.
Trump has been doing better lately in key swing states like Georgia and Pennsylvania, both of which supported the blue candidate in the 2020 election. But Biden seems to be gaining ground with young people, who have been crucial to Democrats’ previous electoral successes.
The most recent New York Times/Siena College survey, according to research website FiveThirtyEight, which is recognised as one of the best pollsters in the nation, showed that the majority of respondents were against both candidates receiving a second term. Biden is regarded by over 60% as either “very unfavourable” or “somewhat unfavourable.” About 52% of respondents said the same thing with Trump.
Though Republicans criticise both candidates, Trump seems to have a stronger hold on the party’s support base. Even when the former president was found guilty last month of 34 felonies related to falsifying business records, 68% of respondents said it had no bearing on their decision to vote.