According to a Harvard Center for American Political Studies (CAPS)/Harris poll conducted between July 31 and August 1 on 2,214 registered voters, of whom 816 were registered Democratic voters, former Vice President Joe Biden is still in the lead following this week’s presidential debates.
The survey asked the Democratic respondents: “Which of the following candidates are you most likely to vote for in a Democratic primary?”
- 34% said Vice President Joe Biden
- 17% said Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)
- 9% said Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA)
- 8% said Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA)
- 4% said South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg
- 3% said former Rep. Beto O’Rourke
No other candidate broke the 2% threshold.
Adding independents and “other” into the mix, Biden still leads with 28%, while Sanders holds 14%, Warren and Harris are tied at 7%, and the rest of the pack trails with 3% or less.
The survey asked all respondents: “Do you find the current field of Democratic Party candidates for president to be impressive or underwhelming?”
Only 38% said they found the candidates “impressive,” while 62% said they are “underwhelming.”
Additionally, the survey asked: “Which one of the Democratic presidential has the best chance of winning against Donald Trump?”
36% stated that Joe Biden has the best chance against Trump. The candidate in second place was Bernie Sanders, with just 11%. Not a single other candidate could crack 6% or higher.
Former Vice President Joe Biden has consistently led the pack of over 20 Democratic presidential candidates since the beginning of the 2020 election cycle.
Despite breakout moments from Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Sen. Kamala Harris, and the steady rise of Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Biden continues to have a tight grip on roughly 30% of the Democratic voter base.
Since January, despite the immense competition, and two debates that some have described as mediocre for the former vice president, Biden consistently retains a double-digit lead over his closest rivals.
A new Politico/Morning Consult survey indicates the same.
The poll, which was conducted on “2,419 registered voters who indicated they may vote in the Democratic primary or caucus in their state,” shows that after the second round of debates, Biden stands strong at 32%, as of August 1. His closest rival, Bernie Sanders, stagnates at 18%. The only other competitor to rival even Sanders is Elizabeth Warren, at 15%.
The Politico/Morning Consult poll appears to show that the second debate did little to nothing to change the standings in the race for president. Even after a stellar debate performance from Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), and data from Google indicating that she was the most searched candidate in all 50 states during the debate, Biden remains at the top of the mountain, while the congresswoman languishes at 1%.
Following the first round of debates in late-June, when Sen. Harris sparred with Biden over desegregation, the senator saw a brief surge in polling appeal, only to tumble down to approximately 10%, where she stands as of publication. Biden suffered a momentary dip, then simply rose back up, according to the RealClearPolitics average.
