President Donald Trump is an historically unlikeable leader, but Democrats are even less enthused about the candidates to challenge him, according to the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.
As 69% of registered voters say they do not like President Trump personally, almost half of voters (49%) say they are very uncomfortable with his 2020 candidacy, per the poll.
Those numbers might be negatives for the incumbent, but the leading Democratic candidates are behind President Trump in voter enthusiasm, the poll found.
- 26% enthusiastic about the president.
- Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., 17%.
- Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., 13%.
- Former Vice President Joe Biden 12%.
"The Democrats want a referendum on Trump, the GOP wants a comparative choice, and therein lies the rub," according to Democratic pollster Peter Hart, who conducts the NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll with Republican pollster Bill McInturff's firm Public Opinion Strategies, per the report.
As for the 69% who do not like President Trump, a record 50% dislike him and his policies, while 19% dislike him but approve of his policies, according to the poll.
A combined 29% like President Trump personally, with 25% of approving of his agenda and just 4% liking the president but disapproving of his policy initiatives.
The last presidential candidate to come close to President Trump dislike was George W. Bush at 42% in March 2006 after Hurricane Katrina, per the poll.
President Trump's approval rating of 45% among registered voters is on par with former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton at this point in their administrations in this poll.
Biden, the Democratic polling leader, is losing confidence amid shaky debate performances. Only 8% of voters have gained confidence in Biden, while 36% say they have lost confidence in his fitness for president.
The poll was conducted Sept. 13-16 with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.27 percentage points.
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