New Quinnipiac poll underscores Trump’s primary strength, doubts on Biden

A new Quinnipiac poll underscores former President Trump’s front-runner status in the GOP presidential primary race, as well as some voter doubts about President Biden as the pair work toward a possible rematch next year. 

The survey found 56 percent of Republican and Republican-leaning voters back the former president. He holds a 31-point lead over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who officially kicks off his White House campaign Wednesday. 

Trump’s support is up 9 points since late March, while DeSantis’s is down 8 points in that same period. Twelve other GOP candidates — both declared and potential — got just 3 percent or less, putting the pair of Republicans alone at the top. 

In the hypothetical rematch between Trump and Biden, Biden ekes out a win with 48 percent of registered voters to Trump’s 46 percent. That split hasn’t changed since late March.

In a hypothetical between DeSantis and Biden, the Florida governor gets 47 percent to Biden’s 46, well within the poll’s 2.4 percentage point margin of error. 

More than half, 65 percent, of voters said they think Biden, 80, is too old for a second term. The president’s age has long been a concern for voters in the run-up to his 2024 announcement.

At 76, Trump is just a few years younger than Biden, but 59 percent of respondents said they think Trump isn’t too old for another term.

The survey was conducted May 18-22 and polled 1,616 self-identified registered voters. For its 669 Republican and Republican-leaning voters, the margin of error was 3.8 percentage points.