Biden Tops Trump in Vote, Economic Confidence
Joe Biden still bests President Trump in a head-to-head matchup, perhaps in part because voters express slightly more confidence in the likely Democratic nominee to handle the post-coronavirus economy.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds Biden earning 48% support among Likely U.S. Voters to Trump’s 43%. Eight percent (8%) remain undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
This marks little change from Biden’s 48% to 42% advantage in early March. Trump beat Biden 47% to 43% in a hypothetical matchup last September.
When asked which candidate would do a better job bringing the country back economically from the coronavirus crisis, 47% of voters say Biden, 44% Trump. Nine percent (9%) are not sure.
Enthusiasm about the economy started to grow immediately following Trump's election as president in November 2016. The Rasmussen Reports Consumer Spending Update clocked economic confidence at a high of 147.8 this past January, but that finding has since tumbled to a low of 93.7 in May following the coronavirus lockdown. The index was at 108.1 the final month President Obama and Vice President Biden were in office.
(Want a free daily e-mail update? If it's in the news, it's in our polls). Rasmussen Reports updates are also available on Twitter or Facebook.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted May 18-19, 2020 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
There’s a lot more voter excitement about a Trump-Biden matchup this fall compared to the last two presidential elections, especially among Republicans.
Biden has the support of 77% of Democrats and leads among voters not affiliated with either major party by 13 points. Trump gets 81% of the Republican vote.
When it comes to confidence in rebuilding the economy, Trump and Biden are well ahead among voters in their respective parties. Unaffiliateds by a 46% to 37% margin have more economic faith in Biden.
Men and middle-aged voters think Trump would do a better job restoring the economy. Women and voters in other age groups trust Biden more.
Government workers (53%) are more confident in Biden than those employed in the private sector (48%). Entrepreneurs put a lot more faith in the incumbent president.
Interestingly, separate polling finds that only 54% of Democrats want Biden as their nominee. Twenty-three percent (23%) of Republicans think their party should nominate someone other than Trump.
A former Senate staffer has accused Biden of sexual assault, and voters suspect she may be telling the truth. But they don’t expect the media to cover the Biden story like they did the allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.
Additional information from this survey and a full demographic breakdown are available to Platinum Members only.
Please sign up for the Rasmussen Reports daily e-mail update (it's free) or follow us on Facebook. Let us keep you up to date with the latest public opinion news.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted May 18-19, 2020 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
Related Articles
Rasmussen Reports is a media company specializing in the collection, publication and distribution of public opinion information.
We conduct public opinion polls on a variety of topics to inform our audience on events in the news and other topics of interest. To ensure editorial control and independence, we pay for the polls ourselves and generate revenue through the sale of subscriptions, sponsorships, and advertising. Nightly polling on politics, business and lifestyle topics provides the content to update the Rasmussen Reports web site many times each day. If it's in the news, it's in our polls. Additionally, the data drives a daily update newsletter and various media outlets across the country.
Some information, including the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll and commentaries are available for free to the general public. Subscriptions are available for $4.95 a month or 34.95 a year that provide subscribers with exclusive access to more than 20 stories per week on upcoming elections, consumer confidence, and issues that affect us all. For those who are really into the numbers, Platinum Members can review demographic crosstabs and a full history of our data.
To learn more about our methodology, click here.
