In recent weeks, after several very public signs of age-related issues, 81-year-old President Joe Biden’s physical and mental fitness for the White House have once again become a topic of debate. Is the oldest president ever to serve still fit for office? A plurality of voters say “no,” according to the latest I&I/TIPP Poll.
Overall, more American voters give Biden failing grades than passing ones when it comes to both his mental and physical health, according to the national online June I&I/TIPP Poll, taken from May 29-31, of 1,910 adults. The poll has a margin of error of +/-2.4 percentage points.
Our first question asked: “President Biden is seeking a second term. How would you rate his mental acuity and physical fitness?” Participants were then given several possible answers, with a school-style grade assigned: A (excellent), B (good), C (average), D (poor), and F (unacceptable).
On mental acuity, or sharpness, the poll wasn’t close: For 47% of those who answered the poll, Biden earned either D (16%) or F (31)% grades. Just 33% gave him either A (14%) or B (19%). Another 16% rated him C — just average.
Overall, Biden’s “grade-point average” was 1.66, or roughly a D+ grade on the traditional “A-to-F” grading continuum.
But, not surprisingly, the answers weren’t uniform across all demographic groups.
For instance, Democrats were far more likely to give Biden high passing grades for mental acuity (67%) than failing ones (11%), while just 10% of Republicans gave Biden passing grades and 80% flunked him. Independents also were unimpressed: They delivered 55% D or F grades, versus just 18% high passing grades.
By race, white respondents were generally harsher on Biden than minorities.
Among white voters, 56% rated Biden at D or F, versus 28% who gave him A or B grades. For blacks, the comparable ratings were 19% D or F grades (poor) for Biden, but 46% gave him As or Bs (good). Hispanics split somewhere in the middle, with 40% giving Biden the lowest possible grades, but 41% giving him the highest.
And, in a possible bad omen for Biden in 2024’s presidential vote, Red State (52% poor, vs. 30% good) and Swing State (49% poor, 32% good) voters seem to be in tune, while even Blue State voters (42% poor, 36% good) seem at best ambivalent about Biden’s fitness for a second term.
The first: “How concerned are you about Biden’s ability to handle national security issues if he is re-elected as president?”
On this question, 62% overall responded either “very concerned” (42%) or “somewhat concerned” (20%), versus 32% answering “not very concerned” (16%) or “not at all concerned (16%).
The final question: “In 2020, President Biden claimed that he did not have any involvement in his son Hunter Biden’s business. Based on what you know now, how honest do you believe the President was about his involvement in his son’s business?”
Here again, responses were quite damning for a major national political figure. Among voters, 48% described Biden as either “not very honest” (15%) or “not at all honest” (33%). That compares to just 39% calling Biden either “somewhat honest” (19%) or “very honest” (20%).
Obey
Article URL : https://issuesinsights.com/2024/06/17/nearly-half-of-voters-say-biden-not-mentally-fit-for-a-second-term-ii-tipp-poll/