A new survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research indicates that the majority of US adults plan to watch at least part of Thursday's presidential debate and that many believe the event will be significant for the campaigns of both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.
As they get ready to compete for the first time since 2020, both men are still largely unpopular, though Trump—the likely Republican nominee—maintains a slight enthusiasm lead with his base as compared to Biden, the incumbent Democratic candidate.
Six out of ten US citizens say they are "extremely" or "very" likely to watch the debate in real time or on tape, as well as to read or hear comments regarding the candidates' performances on social media or in the news.
Despite how unusually early the debate is in the campaign season, the poll indicates that tens of millions of Americans are expected to watch or hear about at least some of Thursday's debate. Supporters of both Biden and Trump saw the debate as a crucial test for their respective candidates, or as simply an entertaining show.
Victoria Perdomo, a 44-year-old stay-at-home mother who supports Trump in Coral Springs, Florida, stated, "I think it's super important." "It presents America's future outlook for the next four years."
Libertarian and registered independent Nic Greene stated he will probably vote for Trump because he is the "least worst candidate." Though he believes that debates don't really aid voters in making decisions, he still expects to be amused and intends to listen to podcasts that offer analysis on the results of the debates.
"With or without these debates, I believe most people have made up their minds," he remarked. "This is a circus."
Four out of ten Americans believe the debate is very important for Trump's campaign, while nearly half of Americans, or 47 percent, believe it is "extremely" or "very" vital for Biden's campaign. For both campaigns, around three out of ten Americans believe it to be at least "very" significant.
The majority of Democrats, or 55%, believe that the success of the Biden campaign depends greatly or very on the outcome of the next debate. Precisely half of Republicans—51 percent—agree that the discussion is crucial to the Trump campaign. Only over one-third of independents believe that both campaigns will benefit much from the debate.
Arthur Morris, a forty-year-old operations manager at a big financial company, is not sure which candidate to support—Trump, Biden, or a third party like independent Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Like a large portion of the American public, he is skeptical of the older contenders' mental faculties and views Biden's debate performance as a crucial litmus test.
Morris stated, "I need Biden to show me that he's articulate enough to be able to hold this office and perform to the level that we need him to."
Murray, of Lewiston, Ohio, stated that Trump must demonstrate his reliability in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol, in which supporters of the president momentarily interfered with Biden's certification of his 2020 loss. Additionally, Trump was recently found guilty of participating in a hush money conspiracy.
A little over 40% of respondents say they plan to watch or listen to all or part of the discussion live, while a comparable percentage say they will watch or listen to snippets of it later. Roughly 4 out of 10 people anticipate reading news or social media criticism regarding the debate and the performance of the candidates. Independents are less likely than Republicans and Democrats to be involved in debate coverage.
Both Biden and Trump have low favorability ratings going into the debate. Roughly 60% of American respondents say they have a very or very bad opinion of Biden, and a same percentage say they have a poor opinion of Trump.
The majority of Americans, 56%, say they are "very" or "somewhat" unhappy with Biden's likelihood of winning the Democratic Party presidential nomination, and a comparable percentage are unhappy with Trump's likelihood of winning the Republican nomination. According to the study, Republicans are still happier with a Trump re-nomination than Democrats are with a predicted Biden re-nomination. Just 42% of Democrats feel the same way about Biden as a nominee, compared to 6 out of 10 Republicans who are happy with Trump.
With Trump and Biden as their party's probable nominees, about 3 out of 10 US adults are unhappy with both; independents and Democrats are more likely to be unhappy with both than Republicans. Republicans and Democrats are more inclined to think poorly of the candidate of the other party than they are of their own.
Approximately 90% of Republicans hold a bad opinion of Biden, whereas approximately 90% of Democrats hold a negative opinion of Trump. In contrast, around 7 out of 10 Democrats think favorably of Biden, and about 7 out of 10 Republicans think favorably of Trump.
As it has been for the previous two years, around 4 out of 10 US adults are satisfied with the way Joe Biden is carrying out his presidential duties. Adult Americans had a comparable level of approval for Biden's management of the economy and abortion policy. Just 3 out of 10 people agree with his immigration policies.
Democratic school librarian Jane Quan-Bell, 70, of Chico, California, stated, "I do believe there has been some progress under Biden, but I believe it's Congress who is the one stalling on any of the policies that Biden wants to proceed with."
For Biden, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is a particularly delicate one. It is significantly lower than his overall approval rating, with only 26% of US adults approving of his handling of the situation. Approximately 60% of Democrats are against his strategy.
