Half of Democrats, 60 percent of Hispanics and 55 percent of African-Americans want Vice President Joe Biden to get in the 2016 presidential race to challenge front-runner Hillary Clinton, according to a new poll.
According to the new Bliss Institute/Zogby Analytics Poll of 459 likely Democratic primary/caucus voters nationwide — conducted online August 3 and 4 — 48 percent said they want Biden to seek the party’s nomination, while 34 percent said he should not.
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Pollster John Zogby told Secrets that self-described Democrats want Biden in by a margin of 50 percent to 33 percent, liberals 41 percent to 35 percent, moderates 53 percent to 36 percent, Baby Boomers 53 percent to 31 percent, Hispanics 60 percent to 23 percent and African Americans 55 percent to 32 percent.
Biden is currently considering a bid and is expected to announce his decision around Labor Day.
The poll is the latest to show support for the vice president, though he wouldn’t be the top choice of Democrats upon entering the race, according to the Bliss-Zogby poll.
Without Biden in the race, Clinton leads Sen. Bernie Sanders 64 percent to 18 percent. But she drops a whopping 16 points with Biden in. In a three-way race, it’s Clinton at 48 percent, Biden 21 percent and Sanders 15 percent.
Their online poll has a margin of sampling error of +/-4.7 percentage points.
“Now, make no mistake about it, Mrs. Clinton still enjoys a hefty lead. Three in four of those polled said they are satisfied with the current field and — by a factor of 62 percent to 25 percent — the likely Democratic voters said that she ‘deserves the party’s nomination’ vs. ‘it is time for someone new.’ Those should certainly, at least on the surface, be considered healthy numbers,” said Zogby who is also posting his results on Forbes.
“On the other hand, when majorities of Hispanic, African American, and single voters say they want Mr. Biden to enter it suggests that she still has a problem generating some enthusiasm among the key Obama Coalition,” said Zogby whose weekly Presidential Report Card is featured Saturdays in Secrets.
In 2016, Zogby Analytics enters a presidential election contest for the sixth time and remains among the best known and most accurate polling brands throughout the world. Nationally and internationally respected for its opinion research capabilities. University of Akron’s Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics is a bipartisan research and teaching institute dedicated to increasing understanding of the political process with special emphasis on political parties, grassroots activity, and ethical behavior. The University of Akron (UA), Ohio’s Polytechnic University, is the region’s most influential public research university, contributing to the resurgence of the local economy, providing a highly skilled workforce, and known for an innovative approach to higher education.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected].
