A Harvard CAPS/Harris poll shows former President Donald Trump beating Joe Biden handily in a potential 2024 rematch.
Surveying 1,815 registered voters between January 19-20, the poll found that Donald Trump leads Biden by six points in 2024 rematch – 46 percent to 40 percent. When up against current Vice President Kamala Harris, the former president fared even better by a whopping 10 points – 49 percent to 39 percent.
The same poll also showed that Trump holds a commanding lead over potential 2024 Republican contenders, trailed only by current Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) in the event that the former president decides not to run again.
Currently, the Donald Trump enjoys 57 percent of support from Republican voters while Ron DeSantis and former Vice President Mike Pence are nearly tied at 12 percent and 11 percent, respectively.
With Trump in the running, currently, no other candidate has double-digit support. However, in the event that Trump does not run again, the poll shows that DeSantis would have 30 percent support among Republicans while Mike Pence would have have 24 percent; Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) would be third place with 14 percent of support.
The poll further showed Ron DeSantis tied with current Vice President Kamala Harris if the two were to go head-to-head: 40 percent to 39 percent while another 21 percent remain undecided.
Last week, after rumors circulated for weeks that he would either drop out or find a new running mate, President Biden confirmed that he will run in 2024 and will keep Kamala Harris as his vice president. In the event of a potential Democrat primary, the poll showed Biden enjoying 32 percent support among Democrats, trailed by Kamala Harris at 14 percent. Socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton are tied at 11 percent.
If Biden were to step down, Harris would have 23 percent support from Democrats while Hillary Clinton would have 17 percent.
“It’s way too early to make predictions about 2024 as early polls usually end up not being a good predictor of what happens,” Mark Penn, the co-director of the Harvard CAPS/Harris poll, told The Hill.
“Trump is starting out in a fairly strong position with Republicans while Biden and Harris have surprisingly little support among Democrats for incumbents,” he added. “Trump is also starting out reasonably well-positioned for the general but he seems to be benefiting by being out of the limelight.”