Huge Majority of Voters Think Biden Too Old to Serve: Poll

A new poll has found broad concern over President Joe Biden’s age as he seeks reelection in 2024.

Released on Sunday, the poll, conducted by ABC News and The Washington Post, found that 68 percent of respondents, just over two-thirds, said that Biden was too old to serve a second term as president.

The former senator and vice president was 78 years old when he was sworn in as president in January 2021, making him the oldest individual to hold the office in American history. By the end of a potential second term, he would be 86.

Concerns about Biden’s age, mental fitness for office, and general well-being have dogged him since he was elected. Despite numerous stand-out achievements, including the passage of sizeable bipartisan bills and a historically strong performance for his party in last year’s midterm election, his approval ratings have sagged, and the new ABC/Washington Post poll showed just 36 percent of respondents approved of his performance as president.

ABC News compared Biden’s current approval rating to other single term presidents around the same time in their terms and found it slightly lower than Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter and Donald Trump. Only Harry S. Truman saw worse approval ratings during his first term, though he was ultimately elected to a second.

Prior to his announcement of a reelection campaign, some people speculated that Biden might not seek a second term, despite there being little to no precedent for such a move by an incumbent, first-term president.

Newsweek reached out to the White House press office via email for comment.

The poll surveyed 1,006 U.S. residents by phone—either landline or cellular—from April 28 through May 3. The respondents broke down as 26-25-41 percent as Democrats, Republicans and independents, respectively.

Biden’s expected GOP challenger in 2024, former President Donald Trump, is only slightly younger at 76 years old and would be 82 by the end of a potential second term if reelected in 2024. Despite this, the poll found less concern among respondents about Trump’s age, with only 44 percent saying he was too old to serve a second term. It also found less doubt about Trump’s physical health and mental acuity among respondents as compared to Biden.

Despite the dire polling results for the time being, many political analysts have stressed that many things can change from the start to the end of a presidential election cycle. Republican candidates also face the trouble of vast opposition to some of their party’s signature stances, with a majority of Americans consistently favoring abortion rights and firearm restrictions.