Most Americans plan to watch some element of Thursday’s presidential debate, and many believe the event will be important for the campaigns of both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
Both men remain widely unpopular as they prepare to face off for the first time since 2020, though Trump, the likely Republican nominee, maintains a modest enthusiasm edge among his base compared with Biden, the Democratic incumbent.
About 6 in 10 adults say they are “extremely” or “very” likely to watch the debate live or in clips, or read or hear commentary about the candidates’ performance in the news or social media.
The poll suggests tens of millions of viewers are likely to watch or listen to at least some of Thursday’s debate despite its unusually early timing in the campaign season. Both Biden and Trump supporters see the debate as an important test for their candidate, or simply a show not to be missed.
“I think it’s super important,” said Victoria Perdomo, a 44-year-old stay-at-home mother and Trump supporter in Coral Springs, Florida. “It shows America what they are going to see over the next four years.”
Nic Greene, a libertarian who is registered as an independent, said he will likely vote for Trump as the “least bad candidate.” He doesn’t think the debates will help voters make decisions much, but he hopes to be entertained and plans to listen to post-debate analysis on podcasts.
“I think most people already have their minds made up, with or without these debates,” he said. “It’s a circus.”
Both sides consider the debate important
About half, 47%, of the public say the debate is “extremely” or “very” important to the success of the Biden campaign and about 4 in 10 say it is very important to the Trump campaign. About 3 in 10 Americans say it is at least “very” important to both campaigns.
Most Democrats, 55%, think the upcoming debate is extremely or very important to the success of Biden’s campaign. About half of Republicans, 51%, say the same about the importance of the debate to the Trump campaign. Only about a third of independents say the debate, which will take place at a CNN studio in Atlanta, is very important to either campaign.
Arthur Morris, a 40-year-old operations manager at a major financial firm, is an open undecided voter for Biden, Trump or a third-party option like independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. He, along with a significant portion of Americans, has doubts about the candidate’s mental abilities, older candidates, and considers Biden’s debate performance an important test.
“I need Biden to show me that he is coherent enough to be able to hold this position and execute at the level that we need him to,” Morris said.
Trump, meanwhile, needs to prove he can be trusted after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol in which Trump supporters disrupted the certification of his 2020 loss to Biden and Trump’s recent conviction. in a hush money payment scheme, said Murray, of Lewiston, Ohio.
About 4 in 10 say they are likely to watch or listen to some or all of the debate live, while a similar share say they will watch or listen to clips later. Another roughly 4 in 10 expect to consume commentary about the debate and the candidates’ performance in the news or on social media. Republicans and Democrats are more likely than independents to follow debate coverage in some way.
Voters remain unhappy with their options
Biden and Trump enter the debate with low approval ratings. About 6 in 10 American adults say they have a very or somewhat unfavorable opinion of Biden, and a similar number have a negative opinion of Trump.
A majority of Americans, 56%, say they are “very” or “somewhat” dissatisfied with Biden being the Democratic Party’s likely nominee for president, and a similar majority is dissatisfied with Trump being the Republican Party’s likely nominee. . The poll indicates that Republicans remain more satisfied with a new Trump nomination than Democrats with an early Biden renomination. Six in 10 Republicans are satisfied with Trump being the nominee; only 42% of Democrats say the same about Biden.
About 4 in 10 American adults approve of the way Biden is handling his job as president, in line with the number that has held true over the past two years. Candidacy Biden’s approval rating among American adults for his handling of the economy is similar, as is his handling of abortion policy. Only 3 in 10 approve of his approach to immigration.
“I think there’s been some progress under Biden, but I think it’s Congress that’s stuck on any of the policies that Biden wants to pursue,” said Jane Quan-Bell, 70, a school librarian in Chico, California, and democrat.
The conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is a particularly vulnerable point for Biden. With only 26% of American adults approving of her handling of the issue, it falls far below her overall approval rating. Nearly 6 in 10 Democrats disapprove of her approach.
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