‘Harris may help Biden with women, youth, GOP voters’
POLL SHOWS EDGE Survey finds that 60% of Americans consider Biden’s selection of Harris as running mate a ‘major milestone’ for US
NEW YORK: Nearly nine out of 10 Democrats approve of US Senator Kamala Harris as their party’s vice presidential nominee, and she is more popular than presidential candidate Joe Biden among women, young voters and some Republicans, according to a Reuters/ipsos poll released on Wednesday.
The August 11-12 public opinion survey also found that 60% of Americans, including 87% of Democrats and 37% of Republicans, considered the selection of Harris - the first Black woman and Asian American nominated for vice presidency - to be a “major milestone” for the US.
The California senator is viewed about as favourably or better than Biden in most major demographic groups, the poll showed, highlighting her potential to help the former vice president expand his support in November’s election.
The poll showed Biden’s lead over Republican President Donald Trump was effectively unchanged after he announced his running mate choice, increasing by 1 percentage point among all Americans to an 8-point advantage - well within the poll’s credibility interval - when compared with a similar poll that ran on Monday and Tuesday.
Forty-six percent of U.S. adults said they would vote for a Biden/ Harris ticket, while 38% would vote for Trump and Vice President Mike Pence. A similar poll that ran on Monday and Tuesday showed that 44% would vote for Biden while 37% would back Trump.
The latest poll also found that 56% of Americans have a favourable impression of Harris, which is about the same as the number who favour Biden. Forty-two percent of US adults say they have a favourable view of Trump and 47% said the same of Pence. Among women, 60% said they have a favourable view of Harris, compared with 53% who felt the same way about Biden.
In addition, about 25% of Republicans said they had a favourable view of Harris and approve of her choice as Biden’s running mate. Only about 20% of Republicans said they have a similarly favourable view of Biden.
Harris also is a little more popular among American adults who are younger than 35 years old: 62% said they view Harris favourably, while 60% said the same of Biden.