“The mounting issues on all fronts have led to the surprise conclusion that Trump is now seen as good a president as Biden, suggesting the honeymoon is being replaced now with buyer’s remorse.” – Mark Penn, co-director of the Harvard CAPS-Harris Poll
Amid an expanding illegal immigrant crisis on the Southern border, a legally challenged vaccine mandate from the Biden White House, and a chaotic Afghanistan exit, President Biden’s polling numbers have taken a serious hit.
A new Harvard CAPS-Harris poll shows voters now consider Trump a better leader than Biden when comparing the two. The poll found fifty-one percent of voters say Trump is a better leader, compared to 49% who say Biden is.
“The mounting issues on all fronts have led to the surprise conclusion that Trump is now seen as good a president as Biden, suggesting the honeymoon is being replaced now with buyer’s remorse,” said Mark Penn, co-director of the Harvard CAPS-Harris Poll survey.
Penn continued, “since Trump lost the popular vote by 5 points, Trump getting 51 percent as a better president is actually an improvement from Election Day.”
Not only do more Americans now see Trump as better leader than Biden, but more have a favorable view of Trump compared to Biden. Forty-eight percent of voters say they have a positive view of Trump compared to 46 percent who say they have a favorable view of Biden.
“Not only do more Americans now see Trump as better leader than Biden, but more have a favorable view of Trump compared to Biden.”
Voters say they have an unfavorable view of Biden 49% to 46% and a favorable view of Trump 48% to 47%. The numbers are slim, but these are stark changes from January, when Trump’s favorability sat at around 40%, and Biden’s sat at well over 50%.
Four issues appear to be driving down Biden’s numbers substantially in recent months, including his tumultuous exit from Afghanistan, the coronavirus vaccine mandate, the rising illegal immigrant crisis, and increasing concerns about crime.
The latest YouGov survey shows just 14% of Americans strongly approve of Biden’s handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal, and 22% somewhat approve. A full 37% of Americans strongly disapprove of Biden’s handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal, and another 13% somewhat disapprove. Overall, Americans disapprove of Biden’s handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal 50% to 36%, while 13% aren’t sure.
“Americans disapprove of Biden’s handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal 50% to 36%, while 13% aren’t sure.”
The same poll shows that while 51% of Americans support Biden’s vaccine mandate to businesses with over 100 employees, 39% of Americans disapprove of the mandate, with a full 32% strongly disapproving. What’s more, Americans believe 39% to 34% the vaccine mandate is too strict.
“Americans believe 39% to 34% the vaccine mandate is too strict.”
Opposition to the mandate is politically polarized, with 71% of Trump voters strongly opposing the mandate, while 72% of Biden voters strongly support it. Forty-five percent of non-college white men strongly oppose the mandate, as do 36% of non-college white women and 39% of voters aged 45 to 64.
Immigration is a rising concern for a majority of Americans, with a full 80% saying immigration is very or somewhat important to them. Immigration is now the top issue for white college-educated men, 17% of whom chose immigration as the most important issue to them out of a list of fourteen policy issues. For white men without a college degree, immigration one of the most important issues along with jobs and the economy.
“Immigration is now the top issue for white college-educated men.”
Americans are also strongly concerned about crime affecting them personally, with a full 40% of Americans saying they are somewhat worried crime will impact themselves or their families. Fifteen percent say they are very worried about crime impacting their lives, and 37% say they are not too worried. Women, Hispanics, young people, political moderates, and those from the Northeast are most likely to be ‘very worried’ about crime impacting themselves or their families.
“Women, Hispanics, young people, political moderates, and those from the Northeast are most likely to be ‘very worried’ about crime impacting themselves or their families.”
As Market Research Foundation pointed out last week, Biden’s polling numbers are in the low 40’s now, down from just over half in January.
Biden sat at a national approval rating of 53% in January according to YouGov, and that is down to just 42% according to the latest YouGov poll.
MRF found Biden is suffering significant losses with swing voters, including college-educated and non-college white men, Hispanics, Blacks, and young people. With the mid-term elections approaching and Biden’s numbers in freefall, House Democrats will have to decide how closely to align with the increasingly unpopular president.
