A new poll found 44% of Democrats believe replacing Joe Biden is necessary for their party to retain the White House in 2024.
The NPR-PBS NewsHour-Marist poll found that 36% of the same group of voters — Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents — would vote for Joe Biden once again.
The poll surveyed 1,032 registered voters nationwide from Oct. 18 to Oct. 22 and has a margin of error of 4.3 percentage points.
Most respondents (37%) said they strongly disapprove of the job Joe Biden is doing as president.
About 60% of Republicans have low confidence that their state or local government will conduct a fair election. Conversely, 55% of Democrats have more confidence.
“There’s a stark partisan divide on the question of trust in elections. 86% of Democrats and 60% of independents have a 'great deal' or 'good amount' of trust that elections are fair. Just 34% of Republicans agree,” said MaristPoll.
When asked what was the biggest threat to fair elections, most Democrats (55%) said it was voter suppression while most Republicans (34%) said it was voter fraud.
Respondents who identified as Republican were likely to think President Donald Trump was their party’s best option to win the 2024 presidency.
According to The Hill, “the findings are a foreboding sign for Biden, whose victory in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary hinged on his argument that he was the most electable candidate in a head-to-head match-up with now-former President Trump.”
“Americans agree that our democracy is threatened but strongly split along party lines as to the causes,” says Lee M. Miringoff, Director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion.
His party’s lack of confidence in him reflects Biden’s fluctuating approval ratings. A Gallup Poll notes that while he has an average 51% approval rating, Biden’s current 42% rate is a record low.
At a news conference in March, Biden told reporters, “My plan is to run for reelection. That’s my expectation.”
The 78-year-old did not, however, rule out the possibility of being a one-term president.
“I said, ‘That is my expectation,’” Biden said. “I’m a great respecter of fate. I’ve never been able to plan four-and-a-half, three-and-a-half years ahead for certain."
At the time, the president was only a few months into his term. As ABC News notes, “his 2024 plans have a direct effect on his political strength. If viewed as a one-term president, Biden would effectively be a lame duck with diminished sway at home and abroad as he pursues an aggressive agenda.”
Should Biden not run again, Vice President Kamala Harris is widely considered the natural successor to the Democrat ticket.
