President Joe Biden and former one-term president Donald Trump are neck and neck in the polls, with the latest Emerson College poll showing Trump ahead of Biden by one point (45%–44%).
But, although astonishing that a self-described pussy grabber who has racked up 91 felony charges and spouts Nazi rhetoric could even come close to Biden, Trump would fare even better were he to run against a popular Democratic alternative, according to the poll results.
When the 1,225 registered voters who responded to the survey were asked about hypothetical matchups, Vice President Kamala Harris lost to Trump by three points (43% to his 46%), while California Gov. Gavin Newsom trailed by 10 points (35% to Trump's 46%). Last in line was Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who "lost" to Trump by 12 points (33% to his 45%).
The poll, conducted between Feb. 13 and 14, sampled 1,225 registered voters and has a margin of error of 2.7 percentage points.
The results appear to clash with a growing sentiment among liberal pundits and political strategists, who have called on Biden to step aside in order to bolster Democrats' chances of victory in 2024.
In February, Nate Silver, founder of the polling site FiveThirtyEight, and Ezra Klein, a New York Times columnist, both wrote that the president — on account of his age and mental fitness — may best serve the country by dropping out of the race.
In November, David Axelrod, a former Obama Administration strategist, pressed Biden to consider passing the torch to the next generation.
However, Biden has shown no signs he is contemplating stepping aside, recently assuaging concerns about his mental acuity, saying "my memory is fine."
But for what it's worth, a more recent major poll between the two frontrunners, conducted by Quinnipiac and released just yesterday, shows Biden slightly in the lead with 49 points to Trump's 45. Let's just hope half of America's registered voters come to their senses before it's too late.
