Only a third of Americans think Biden deserves to be reelected in 2024, new poll suggests

Only 44 per cent of Democrats want Mr Biden on a general election ballot next year

With less than a year until the 2024 primary election season kicks off, a large majority of Americans say they’d prefer Democrats to put up someone other than President Joe Biden as the party’s nominee next year.

The random survey of 1,595 Americans, commissioned by CNN and carried out by SSRS, found that 42 per cent of respondents said they approve of Mr Biden’s performance as president, though 57 per cent said they did not approve of how the 46th president has carried out his responsibilities. That’s a three-point drop from a similar survey in January, when 45 per cent said they approved of the president’s performance.

But when asked about their preferences for next year’s presidential election, the result was far less positive for Mr Biden.

Just 32 per cent of respondents — representing roughly a third of Americans — said Mr Biden deserves a second term in the White House, a result comparable to how many said former president Donald Trump deserved to be reelected at the same point in his term.

Only a quarter of respondents under age 35, a significant demographic bloc for Democrats, said the president should spent four more years in the White House. The result is a full 10 points lower than a similar survey found for the same group in December of last year.

The large number of Americans who say Mr Biden should not be reelected may reflect the country’s views of the president’s age and mental state. At age 80, he is the oldest person ever to serve as President of the United States. He would be 82 years old on Inauguration Day if he is reelected, which would mean he’d finish his term at 86 years of age.

The survey found that more than two thirds of respondents — 67 per cent — said he lacks the “stamina and sharpness” to serve as America’s chief executive, with 65 per cent saying that he “does not inspire confidence”.

Americans’ views of the president are decidedly negative in other areas, with 54 per cent saying they don’t view him as “honest and trustworthy”. The same number of respondents said they don’t believe Mr Biden cares about people like them.

Though Mr Biden has not announced a reelection bid, he has repeatedly said he intends to run for a second term. Yet the survey found that 54 per cent of Democrats say they’d prefer someone else to be the party’s standard-bearer next year. Just 44 per cent say Mr Biden should appear on the general election ballot.