Former Vice President Joe Biden is all but assured of getting his party’s presidential nomination this month. However, a new poll suggests that the majority of people don’t believe he’s capable of serving out a full term.
“Likely Democrat nominee Joe Biden is expected to announce his vice presidential running mate any day now, and most voters think it’s likely that person will be president within the next four years if Biden is elected in November,” Rasmussen reported on Monday. Biden announced Tuesday that he has chosen Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) as his running mate.
59% believe Biden’s VP likely to become president
According to its survey of likely voters conducted online and via telephone, some 59 percent of respondents believe that “it’s likely Biden’s running mate will be president before the end of Biden’s four-year term if he wins this fall.”
In contrast, the number who “consider it unlikely that Biden’s vice presidential choice will be president before his four-year term ends” stands at just 39, with a mere 14 percent saying that it is “not at all likely.”
What’s more, the data indicates that this skepticism isn’t limited to Republican voters, with even 49 percent of Democrats expressing doubt over whether Biden could last in office, a number that grows to 57 percent among those not tied to either party.
Rasmussen also reports that expectations are closely tied to age, saying, “The younger the voter, the more convinced they are that Biden is unlikely to finish a four-year term if elected president.”
“But,” the polling firm adds, “most voters in nearly every demographic category think it’s likely his running mate will become president in the next four years.”
Poll: Almost 4 in 10 voters think Biden is suffering from dementia
Another Rasmussen survey from late June showed that 38 percent of voters believed that Biden was suffering from dementia, including 20 percent of Democrats and 30 percent of Independents.
That perception is likely fueled by the almost non-stop train of gaffes and verbal missteps that have plagued Biden’s speeches.
At various points over the past year, Biden has confused his wife with his sister, forgotten what state he is in, and given incoherent answers to questions.
During a February campaign speech in South Carolina, the former vice president announced to listeners that he was running for a seat in the United States Senate and told those who didn’t support him that they should “vote for the other Biden.”
Despite these problems, Biden has been resistant to the suggestion that he undergo a cognitive fitness exam, and recently fired back at a reporter who raised the issue by asking if he was “on cocaine.”
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