A recent Wall Street Journal poll shows former President Donald Trump surging ahead of President Joe Biden in a hypothetical 2024 rematch, marking a significant shift in public sentiment.
The survey, conducted from November 29 to December 4, reveals not only Trump’s lead but also Biden’s lowest approval ratings since taking office.
According to the poll, 37 percent of respondents approve of Biden’s job performance, while a substantial 61 percent express unfavorable views of the president.
The dissatisfaction with Biden extends to his policies, with 53 percent of respondents believing that his implemented policies have personally hurt them, while only 23 percent feel positively impacted.
In a head-to-head matchup between Biden and Trump, the former president takes the lead by 4 percentage points, with 47 percent supporting Trump and 43 percent backing Biden.
When five potential third-party and independent candidates are introduced, Trump’s lead widens to 6 points, securing 37 percent to Biden’s 31 percent.
Among the additional candidates, Democrat-turned-independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. garners the most support, with eight percent.
The poll reflects a broader dissatisfaction with Biden’s leadership, raising questions about his viability in a potential 2024 reelection bid.
Notably, only 23 percent of respondents believe Biden’s policies have personally benefited them, contributing to the president’s overall decline in approval.
The age factor also comes into play, as Biden, at 81, is the oldest president in U.S. history. Amid widespread questions about his age and calls for him to step down after his first term, the poll indicates a growing sentiment that Biden may not be the ideal candidate to defeat Trump.
The president himself has fueled speculation by suggesting that if Trump were not running, he might not have run for reelection.
Trump became the first incumbent president in three decades to lose re-election – and the only one whose defeat culminated in a violent attempted coup d’état – but before voters fired him, he botched the nation’s response to a deadly pandemic, surrendered Afghanistan to the Taliban and added $8 trillion to the national debt.
Biden’s campaign, however, remains resolute in its defense of the president. Despite the challenging numbers, they argue that Biden is the best candidate to take on Trump, emphasizing his experience and leadership qualities.
The poll results arrive at a time when Trump, 77, is perceived as the frontrunner in the GOP presidential primary, despite facing multiple legal battles.
Trump and 18 of his allies were indicted by a Georgia grand jury in August on charges related to efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Additionally, Trump has faced three other indictments this year, covering issues ranging from his business dealings to the handling of classified documents.
While Trump’s legal challenges loom large, his popularity among voters appears undiminished, as evidenced by the significant lead in the Wall Street Journal poll.
The data suggests that Trump’s base remains strong, even as he navigates legal obstacles and positions himself as a formidable contender for the 2024 presidential race.
It is worth noting that the poll surveyed 1,500 registered voters through cellphone, landline, and text-to-web methods, with a margin of error of plus-or-minus 2.5 percentage points.