Former president Donald Trump is leading President Joe Biden by three points ahead of Thursday night’s debate, an exclusive poll shows.
The Democracy Institute/Daily Express US poll found that among 500 likely US voters, Trump has 46 percent support compared to Biden’s 43 percent. Four percent were undecided.
When independent candidates including Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were thrown into the mix, Trump’s support went down to 42 percent and Biden’s to 38 percent as RFK Jr. took 12 percent support.
Biden and Trump are set to face off in their first presidential debate on Thursday night in Atlanta hosted by CNN, and most US adults have said they plan to watch some element of the event.
A majority of voters also think the debate will be important for Biden and Trump’s campaigns, as both men remain broadly unpopular among several voting blocs.
Millions of Americans are expected to tune into Thursday’s debate despite how unusually early it comes in the campaign season. Both Biden and Trump supporters view the debate as a major test for their candidate – or just a spectacle not to miss.
Victoria Perdomo, a 44-year-old stay-at-home mom and a Trump supporter in Coral Springs, Florida, said to the AP: “It shows America what you’re going to see for the next four years.”
Nic Greene, a registered independent, said he’ll likely vote for Trump as the “least worst candidate”. He doesn’t think debates do much to help voters make decisions, but he’s expecting to be entertained and plans to listen to post-debate analysis.
He said: “I think the majority of people have their minds made up with or without these debates. It’s a circus.”
According to a new poll from The AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, about half – 47 percent – of Americans said the debate is “extremely” or “very” important for the success of Biden’s campaign, and about four in 10 said it’s highly important for Trump’s campaign.
Arthur Morris, a 40-year-old operations manager at a major financial firm, is an undecided voter open to Biden, Trump, or a third-party option such as independent candidate RFK Jr. He, along with a significant share of Americans, has doubts about the mental capabilities of the aging candidates, and sees Biden’s debate performance as an important test.
Morris said: “I need Biden to demonstrate to me that he’s cogent enough to be able to hold this office and execute to the level that we need him to.”
Both Biden and Trump are also entering the debate with low favorability ratings. About six in 10 US adults said they have a very or somewhat unfavorable view of Biden, and a similar number have a negative view of Trump. About three in 10 US adults are dissatisfied with both Trump and Biden as their party’s likely nominees.
It remains to be seen whether Thursday’s debate will have any sway in how voters view this year’s election and who they decide to vote for come November.
