Biden may meet stiffer challenge from Trump

Multiple political polls show that while former president Donald Trump appears to be the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, Democratic President Joe Biden is facing doubt from the public about his performance on the economy, immigration and his age, for the 2024 reelection that he appears to be seeking.

In a poll conducted by NBC News between Sept 15 and 19 of more than 800 registered voters, Biden's approval rate was 41 percent, with 56 percent of respondents disapproving his job. The very positive view of Biden stood at only 19 percent, lower than Trump's 23 percent.

Trump appears to enjoy more support from his base, with 58 percent saying he should continue to lead the Republican Party, while 58 percent said they would prefer to see a Democratic candidate challenge Biden in the nomination race.

If the election were to be held during the poll, 39 percent would vote for Trump and 36 percent would vote for Biden.

Most voters, or 74 percent, were concerned about Biden's age and him not having the necessary mental and physical health to be a US president for a second term, while that concern for Trump was at 47 percent. However, 62 percent of voters were concerned about Trump facing criminal and civil lawsuits.

Another poll conducted by The Washington Post and ABC News between Sept 15 and 20 of about 1,000 registered voters also showed Biden's approval rate was low at 37 percent, while 48 percent of voters said they approved of Trump's performance when he was the president.

Biden scored low on the economy with a 37 percent approval rate from the NBC poll and 30 percent from The Washington Post-ABC poll. The approval rate for his border policy was even lower at 23 percent; both numbers were the lowest since he became president.

This poll also showed that Democratic-leaning voters prefer to have a different candidate to run for president in 2024 — 62 percent said they would like to see someone else nominated, with 20 percent saying just anybody will do. Support for Biden's nomination was at 33 percent among Democrats.

Stronger base support

Trump also enjoyed more base support in The Washington Post-ABC poll, with 54 percent of Republican voters favoring him over Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, at 15 percent.

Despite Biden's low approval numbers, more respondents, or 47 percent, said Congress should not begin impeachment proceedings against Biden, with about 44 percent in favor.

The divide between the two major political parties on this issue was huge: 70 percent of Republicans supported the impeachment, while 80 percent of Democrats opposed it.

Public support for aiding Ukraine also seems to be waning. About 41 percent of voters said the US is doing too much for Ukraine, the highest number since the conflict started.

On Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram that his country has received US Abrams battle tanks, without specifying the modifications made to the tanks or the exact numbers that have been delivered to Ukraine.

Aid to Ukraine has been one of the core issues in the US Congress deadlock over the next financial year's budget. Since February last year, US military aid to Ukraine has totaled $43.9 billion, according to US government figures.

The poll also showed that currently more voters would vote for Trump (51 percent) over Biden (42 percent). However, The Washington Post said Trump's almost 10-percentage-point lead over Biden might be an outlier. The results are quite different from the poll's previous results and the NBC poll.

Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that the poll results are "ridiculous".

"It's a ridiculous outlier (Trump up 10 over Biden — laughable). My question: How could you even publish a poll so absurd on its face? Will be a lingering embarrassment for you."

The NBC poll showed that the two men are in a dead heat right now, and Biden faces a difficult battle to remain in the office.

"This survey is a startling flashing red light for an incumbent party," Republican pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies told NBC.

Xinhua and agencies contributed to this story.