The vast majority of Americans agree with President Joe Biden’s decision to drop his reelection bid following concerns about his mental fitness, a recent New York Times/Siena poll shows.
Around 87% of voters approve of the president’s decision, with only 9% disapproving based on 1,142 registered voters who were polled from July 22 to 24, according to the NYT. Biden announced his withdrawal from the presidential race in an X post on Sunday after a poor debate performance sparked several high-profile Democrats to urge him to step aside, including Rep. Adam Schiff and reportedly Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
In the same survey, 77% of voters reported they were either “satisfied” or “enthusiastic” about the announcement, with 56% stating they disapproved of Biden’s handling of his presidency as a whole. About half of respondents said they voted for Biden in 2020.
A poll released just after the June debate between Biden and former President Donald Trump showed that 72% of voters no longer believed the president to be mentally fit enough to hold office for another term. In a July poll done before the president’s announcement, just over half of Americans said the president should withdraw from the race.
My fellow Americans:
It’s been the honor of my life to serve as your President.
I draw strength and find joy in working for the people.
But this sacred task of perfecting our Union is not about me. It’s about you. Your families. Your futures.
It’s about “We the People.”
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 25, 2024
Biden announced in his withdrawal that he supported his running mate Vice President Kamala Harris to step into the race in his place despite Harris receiving virtually no votes in the Democratic primary. Polls conducted after the Sunday announcement found a majority of respondents believe the new presumptive Democratic nominee played a role in hiding Biden’s apparent decline from the public.
Biden’s favorability has remained low throughout his presidency, steadily holding under 40% in recent months. The president had been trailing behind Trump in many polls leading up to his decision to drop from the race, with pollster Nate Silver putting Trump at 42.7% and Biden at 39.7% nationally in a July model.
Despite polling, Biden had insisted after the debate that he would not end his reelection campaign even up until the week of his announcement.
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