Voters regard both Trump and Biden as ‘embarrassing’: Pew survey

Voters' doubts about Biden's mental sharpness, while not new, have become the subject of intense focus following the debate.

Trump and Biden. / File Photo

Less than 120 days until millions of Americans cast their vote to decide their next president, a survey by the Pew Research Centre revealed that majority of voters regard both Biden and Trump as "embarrassing.”

Roughly six in ten voters (63 percent for each candidate) expressed this view about both candidates. Additionally, a significant portion of each candidate’s supporters share this sentiment: 37 percent of Biden supporters and 33 percent of Trump supporters.

The survey revealed that following President Joe Biden’s poor performance in the June 27 debate, former President Donald Trump holds a 4 percentage point lead over Biden among registered voters. 44 percent say that if the election were held today, they would vote for Trump; 40 percent would vote for Biden, while 15 percent support third-party candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Voters' doubts about Biden's mental sharpness, while not new, have become the subject of intense focus following the debate. Only about a quarter of voters (24 percent) say the phrase "mentally sharp" describes Biden very or fairly well, while more than twice as many (58 percent) describe Trump as mentally sharp.

On the other hand, most voters describe Trump as "mean-spirited." The former President trails Biden on perceptions of honesty and, by a narrower margin, on empathy. About twice as many voters describe Trump as mean-spirited (64 percent) compared to those who say the same about Biden (31 percent).

Infographic. / Pew Research Center

Dissatisfaction with 2024 campaign

In the survey, voters also expressed widespread dissatisfaction with the state of American politics and the presidential choices in the 2024 campaign:

87 percent say that so far, the campaign does not make them feel proud of the country. 76 percent say it is not focused on important policy debates while 68 percent describe the campaign as too negative.

Inforgraphic / Pew Research Center

Majorities of voters across demographic groups express dissatisfaction with the presidential candidates. However, Trump supporters are far more satisfied with their choices compared to Biden or Kennedy supporters, the survey found.

Infographic. / Pew Research Center

Voters would replace Biden and Trump

Since April, there has been a modest increase in the percentage of voters who express a desire to replace both Biden and Trump on the ballot. Currently, 53 percent of voters favor replacing Biden and Trump with different candidates, up from 49 percent in April.

The shift in sentiment towards replacing both Biden and Trump has been driven entirely by Biden supporters. Currently, 71 percent of Biden supporters express a desire to replace both candidates if given the opportunity to decide the major party candidates for the 2024 election. In contrast, Trump supporters are less inclined to replace both candidates compared to April.