Nearly 4 in 5 Democrats approve of Harris replacing Biden if he withdraws: Poll

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - Nearly four in five Democrats would support Vice President Kamala Harris replacing President Joe Biden if he bows to mounting internal pressure and ends his reelection bid, according to a poll released Thursday.

Fata from this week's Economist/YouGov poll found 79% of Democrats would favor the change with four months to go before Americans elect the US’ next president. Biden has been facing mounting calls from within his party to step aside following a disastrous debate performance in late June that has further exacerbated public doubt about his mental acuity.

Democrats, however, lacked consensus on whether Harris' nomination would bode better for the party's chances in November.

Only 28% said Harris would be more likely than Biden to defeat Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. Twenty-four percent said she would be less likely while 32% said she would have about the same odds. Among registered voters more generally, polling shows Trump has a wider margin of support against Harris compared to Biden. The former president leads the incumbent by 2 points, compared to besting Harris by 5.

Harris continues to have dour favorability among the general public, faring worse than Trump and his vice presidential nominee JD Vance. Only Biden has worse favorability numbers.

Aside from Harris, speculation has mounted that Democrats could nominate California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro or Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

The polling indicates that the election is more of an apparent referendum on Trump than on Biden with the share of Democrats saying they are voting against the former president jumping by 12% while Republicans who say they are voting for Trump by 13%.