Biden maintains 12-point national lead: poll

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden holds a 12-point lead among registered voters in a national poll released by The Washington Post and ABC News early Sunday.

Biden is supported by 53 percent of registered voters while Trump is backed by 41 percent, according to the survey, a finding consistent with similar polls over the past few months. Biden also holds a 12-point lead among likely voters, 54 to 42 percent.

The economy was listed as the single most important issue by 29 percent of registered voters, nearly twice as many as any other issue.

A majority of voters, 54 percent, said they approve of Trump’s performance on the economy while 45 percent disapprove.

Almost six in 10 registered voters, 58 percent, said they disapprove of the president’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, however, while 41 percent approved. Biden is also more trusted on handling the pandemic a 17-point margin, pollsters discovered.

Forty-four percent of voters approve of the president’s performance in the Oval Office, compared to 54 percent who disapprove.

The former vice president currently tops Trump among likely female voters, 59 to 36 percent, and they have equal support among men, at 48 percent each, according to the poll. The Post noted that men favored Trump by 11 points in 2016, while Democrat Hillary Clinton had a 13-point advantage among women.

Voters 65 and older are also now split between the two candidates, with 49 percent favoring Biden and 48 percent backing Trump.

Biden holds a 44-point lead among moderates, 69 to 25 percent, which would be a record if it stands on Election Day, according to ABC News.

Three in four Trump supporters say they are very enthusiastic about the president, while six in ten Biden supporters describe their enthusiasm as strong.

Trump weighed in on the poll late Sunday morning, predicting a “bigger win than even 2016!”

In 2016, the ABC News/Washington Post Poll was such a complete disaster that these two Fake News Organizations changed the numbers prior to the Election. Now these haters are trying the same thing, though on a lesser scale, again. Will have a bigger win than even 2016!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 11, 2020

The telephone poll of 1,014 adults was conducted between Oct. 6 and 9. It has a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points for registered voters and adults and a margin of error of 4 percentage points voters for likely voters.

Biden held leads ranging from 5 to 12 points over Trump in four polls completed on Oct. 6, according to a RealClearPolitics compilation of surveys.

–Updated at 12:49 p.m.