Majority of Biden Supporters Voting against Trump - Not for Aging Biden

November will feature a 2020 presidential election redux, with former President Donald Trump facing off against incumbent Joe Biden and, according to a recent survey, the majority of Biden voters are backing the 81-year-old Democrat as a way of voting against Trump, rather than for Biden.

An Economist/YouGov poll conducted last week asked Biden voters, “Would you say you are mostly voting FOR Joe Biden or AGAINST Donald Trump?” A slim majority of 51% said they were voting against Trump, while only 48% said they were voting for Biden and 1% said they weren’t sure. Amongst Democrats, 53% said they were voting for Biden and 45% against Trump. But amongst Independent voters backing Biden, only 29% said they were voting for Biden and 70% said they were voting against Trump.

Meanwhile, 67% of those intending to vote for Trump said they are doing so because they back the former president. Only 32% responded, “I’m mostly voting AGAINST Joe Biden.” Sixty-nine percent of Republicans and 62% of independents said they are voting for Trump, against 30% of Republicans and 35% of independents who said they are voting against Biden.

Additionally, the survey found that Trump currently has a two-point advantage over Biden. Trump leads with 42% against Biden’s 40%, Independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr. polls at 3%, other candidates earn 1% each, 2% say they don’t intend to vote, and 9% of voters say they aren’t sure who they’ll cast their ballot for in November. Of note, Trump maintains a strong lead over Biden among Independent voters, with 37% backing the former president and 26% opting for the incumbent. However, 18% of Independent voters say they are unsure who they will support in November, compared to 7% of Democrats and 4% of Republicans.

As in many other polls over the past months, inflation (22%) and immigration (14%) were rated the top two issues of concern for American voters, followed by jobs and the economy (10%), abortion (9%), and health care (9%). While Biden’s approval rating is low (31%) on inflation, it’s even lower (29%) on immigration. Sixty-five percent of voters also rated Biden as a weak leader, including 46% who rated him “very weak,” while 52% of voters rated Trump a strong leader.

A majority (54%) of voters also said that Biden’s age and cognition “severely limit his ability to do the job” of president. This follows repeated concerns over the 81-year-old Democrat’s seemingly declining cognitive state. Earlier this week, the White House had to respond to questions regarding Biden’s age after several videos showed the president wandering aimlessly during events with other world leaders and freezing up onstage at his own fundraiser, only to be led by the hand offstage by former President Barack Obama.

A survey last week regarding the upcoming presidential debate found that 70% of voters expect Biden “to mess up his words,” 49% expect him “to forget where he is,” 41% expect him “to walk off the wrong side of the stage,” and 40% expect him “to have problems standing up.” The vast majority of polled voters, when asked, used the same word to describe Biden: “old.”

According to Politico, the Biden White House has “established a taskforce to mitigate the risks” posed by videos showing Biden wandering aimlessly, forgetting things, mumbling incoherently, or having any such octogenarian moments. “Voters deserve accurate information to inform their choice this November, and our campaign will be vigilant in calling out these lies when we see them,” Biden campaign spokesperson Mia Ehrenberg told Politico. “We hope media organizations and others with influential platforms follow our lead.” The White House has referred to such videos as “fakes,” stating that they are “manipulated,” edited, or altered to present the president in a negative light.