A new poll shows that the 2024 election could well wind up being a cakewalk for President Joe Biden thanks to an unlikely source: Democrat turned Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist National Poll released Tuesday shows that Kennedy is siphoning off far more voters from disgraced former president Donald Trump than the incumbent Biden.
With Kennedy in the race, Biden easily wins a second term in office, besting Trump by 7 points, which would be a landslide. In 2020, Biden beat Trump in the popular vote by a margin of 51.3% to 46.9%. The electoral vote count was even more lopsided, with Biden getting 306 electoral votes to Trump’s 232.
Additionally, Biden loses 5 percentage points among Democrats with Kennedy in the race. Trump, however, loses 10 points among Republicans, a clear two-to-one margin that could easily result in a massive victory for Biden.
Lee M. Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, noted:
“Although it’s always tricky to assess the impact of a third-party candidate, right now Kennedy alters the equation in Biden’s favor. What this does speak to, however, is that about one in six voters are looking for another option, especially independents.”
Kennedy, who has trafficked in conspiracy theories involving vaccines for years, simply has more in common with Trump voters than he does those who would be casting their ballots for Biden. And come November, that could guarantee that Biden is reelected to a second term.