Former Vice President Joe Biden’s favorability enjoyed a nearly double-digit gain after Democratic Party figures, including former President Barack Obama and Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, offered their endorsements last week.
New polling data released Tuesday shows Biden with the support of 68 percent of primary voters under age 45 and holding a 5-point lead over President Donald Trump, 47 to 42 percent, among registered voters of all political affiliations. The April 13 endorsement from Sanders, who dropped out of the Democratic race just days before, has helped Biden gain the support of many younger voters who previously supported the progressive Vermont senator.
Several polls released Sunday also show Biden leading Trump by at least 5 points in hypothetical head-to-head matchups. A Morning Consult/Politico poll conducted between April 18 and19 showed that three-quarters of Democratic voters were at least aware that Sanders, Obama and Warren had put their support behind Biden.
Sixty percent of younger Democratic primary voters between ages 18 and 29 now say they support Biden’s bid for the White House, up 5 points from the week before the high-profile endorsements. Just under one-third of those same younger Democratic voters say they have an unfavorable view of Biden, a 5-point drop after the endorsements. Biden’s net favorability rose by 9 points among these key Democratic voters this past week.
The percentage of voters under 30 who have an unfavorable view of Biden fell by 4 points after he received the Obama, Sanders and Warren endorsements.
“I know we share the understanding that we’ve got to go forward,” Sanders told Biden last week. “Today, I am asking all Americans, every Democrat, every independent and a lot of Republicans to come together in this campaign to support your candidacy, which I endorse.”
The New York Times reported that Obama played a significant role in encouraging Sanders to drop out of the Democratic race in order to “accelerate the endgame” and boost unity within the party. During his endorsement last week, Sanders called Trump “the most dangerous president in the history of this country” and won Obama’s praise during the former president’s endorsement days later. Just as he had during the 2016 primary contest between Sanders and Hillary Clinton, Obama had remained quiet about his support until the selection process played out.
According to this most recent Morning Consult/Politico survey of roughly 13,000 Democratic primary voters, 78 percent from all age groups say they have a favorable view of Biden. About 18 percent overall say they have an unfavorable view of the former vice president.
Getty Images/DREW ANGERER/Staff
