Trump, Biden Favorable Ratings Both Below 50%

Heading into presidential debate season, former Vice President Joe Biden edges out President Donald Trump in favorability ratings from the American people, 46% to 41%, while the candidates’ running mates are roughly tied in favorability. Sen. Kamala Harris, running for vice president on the Democratic ticket, is viewed favorably by […] Read more »

UMD Critical Issues Poll Sheds Light on Impact of Party Conventions, Shows Biden Lead

A new University of Maryland Critical Issues Poll took the national political pulse during the Democratic National Convention and the Republican National Convention, and found little sway in the allegiances of self-identified Republicans and Democrats. However, the poll revealed that independents may be the reason that Democratic nominee Joe Biden […] Read more »

The Flight 93 Convention

In 2016, an anonymous author described the battle between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton as the “Flight 93 election.” In dark, urgent terms, the article argued that a Hillary Clinton victory would change America so irrevocably that conservatives needed to think of themselves as the passengers on United Airlines Flight […] Read more »

Positivity on Biden hits high after the DNC takes center stage

The Democratic National Convention took over the conversation surrounding the presidential race this week, and more Americans had positive things to say about the party’s nominee — former Vice President Joe Biden — than at any point in the last eight weeks. These findings come from The Breakthrough, a project […] Read more »

Biden enjoys post-convention bump in favorability

The Democratic National Convention, which attracted a smaller audience compared to last cycle, still delivered a favorability boost for Democratic nominee Joe Biden, particularly among the core base of the party, according to a new ABC News/Ipsos poll released Sunday. Prior to the convention, Biden had a net negative favorability […] Read more »

Harris dominated the conversation in the lead up to the convention

California Sen. Kamala Harris’ addition to the Democratic ticket dominated the things Americans heard, read or saw about former Vice President Joe Biden in the days leading up to the Democratic convention. And she came close to unseating coronavirus as the top word mentioned about President Donald Trump. These findings […] Read more »