Nearly 8 in 10 Democrats say party should nominate Harris: Poll

A majority of Democrats believe the party should nominate Vice President Harris for the presidential ticket as members rapidly coalesce around her after President Biden dropped out of the race, according to a new survey.

A CBS News/YouGov Poll, released Monday, found 79 percent of Democrats support the party nominating Harris to top the 2024 ticket, while 21 percent said someone else should be nominated.

The poll, taken just after Biden announced he would withdraw from the race following weeks of calls from some Democrats to step aside over concerns about his stamina to serve another four years or beat former President Trump in November. Biden later endorsed Harris to run in his place, and many on the left rapidly united around her candidacy.

Harris crossed the threshold to secure the Democratic presidential nomination, receiving more than 1,968 delegate endorsements less than two days after Biden dropped out of the race.

Roughly 83 percent of Democratic voters said they approved of Biden’s withdrawal from the race, while only 17 percent disapproved, per the survey.

About 45 percent of party voters said their chances of defeating Trump are “better” without Biden in the race, while 10 percent said their chances are “worse,” the poll found. Another 17 percent said the chances were not changed, and 28 percent said it depends on the nominee.

The survey also suggested that Biden’s decision to step aside may prompt more voters to head to the polls this November, with 39 percent of Democrats stating they are more motivated to vote now that the president is out of the race. About 49 percent said it did not change their motivation and 6 percent said it made them less motivated.

The CBS News/YouGov poll was conducted Sunday and Monday among 1,071 registered voters who identify as Democrats. It has a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points.