Military Times poll: Biden holds 4-point lead over Trump among troops

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden leads President Trump by roughly 4 percentage points among active-duty troops, according to a new Military Times poll released on Monday, suggesting that the president’s support may be eroding among a group he sees as a part of his political base.

The poll, conducted in partnership with the Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University with participants chosen from Military Times subscribers, showed Biden garnering 41 percent support among active-duty service members to Trump’s 37 percent. 

By comparison, a similar poll from October 2016 showed Trump leading then-Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by roughly 20 points among military voters.

Trump and his allies have long boasted of the president’s strong support among military voters given defense budget increases during his tenure in the White House. 

But the Military Times poll, fielded between late July and early August, suggests that his support among those voters may be waning. Trump’s favorability among active-duty troops is now underwater, with roughly 47 percent reporting an unfavorable view of the president and about 38 percent reporting a favorable view.

The poll shows a notable difference in perceptions of the president between officers and enlisted troops. Nearly 60 percent of officers reported an unfavorable opinion of Trump compared to 47 percent of enlisted members. 

Still, Trump’s favorability remains underwater among every military group surveyed in the poll, including among white, non-Hispanic members; women; men; officers; enlisted members; and minorities.

The poll was conducted from July 27-Aug. 10 and is based on online responses from 1,018 active-duty troops. The list of participants was culled from Military Times subscriber lists and databases. The poll has a margin of error of less than 2 percentage points.

–This report was updated on Sept. 1 at 10:02 a.m. to reflect corrected Military Poll poll results for Joe Biden.