According to a Politico report, a new polling memo shows many Democrats outperforming Joe Biden in a presidential matchup against former President Donald Trump.
The report also finds Democrats’ desire for a name outside the current administration (i.e. not Kamala).
From Politico:
The topline findings from interviews with over 15,000 voters in seven battleground states:
- “Alternative Democratic candidates run ahead of President Bidenby an average of three points across the battleground states. Nearly every tested Democrat performs better than the President. This includes Vice President [KAMALA] HARRIS who runs better than the President (but behind the average alternative).”
- “Some of the gains are coming from winning undecideds and those previously supporting a third party. However, alternative candidates are also pulling votes from Donald Trump. All candidates continue to hold the Democratic base.”
- “Voters are looking for a fresh face. Those more closely tied to the current administration perform relatively worse than other tested candidates.”
The strongest potential candidates are (in alphabetical order) Arizona Sen. MARK KELLY, Maryland Gov. WES MOORE, Pennsylvania Gov. JOSH SHAPIRO and Michigan Gov. GRETCHEN WHITMER. All four outpaced Biden “by roughly 5 points across battleground states.”
The polling and the report echo what Democrat strategists like James Carville have been saying for months — anybody but Biden will fare better against Trump.
More over at Politico:
A polling memo circulating among Dem party officials argues that the best chance to defeat Trump is with a new nominee independent of the incumbent admin.
In other words: not Kamala Harris.
Playbook has more ⬇️https://t.co/uZZfFPeXmK
— POLITICO (@politico) July 17, 2024