A new poll seems to show waning support for former President Donald Trump’s political future, with more than 50% of respondents saying he should be barred from serving as president again down the road.
The poll — conducted by Yahoo News/YouGov shortly after New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a new lawsuit against the Trump family — asked nearly 1,600 registered voters whether the former president should “be allowed to serve as president again in the future,” given “what we know about the ongoing investigations.”
Fifty-one percent of respondents said that in light of his legal troubles, he should not be allowed to serve as president again. Only 35% said he should be allowed back in the White House. The remaining 14% were not sure.
Previous polls by Yahoo News/YouGov have asked voters if Trump being found guilty of various allegations would change their opinion on whether he’s fit to be president. This is the first poll to ask if information gleaned from the investigations already is enough to rule him out, regardless of whether he’s ultimately found guilty — and the results are, perhaps surprisingly, decisive.
Even as the new poll reveals skepticism in Trump’s fitness for public office, it produced one good result for the 45th president. Asked in the same survey whether people would vote for Joe Biden or Trump in a hypothetical rematch in 2024, respondents only favored Biden by 2 percentage points (47% to Trump’s 45%); when Yahoo News/YouGov asked voters the same question three weeks ago, Biden held a 6-point lead over his predecessor.
As Americans have learned in previous elections, political polling should be taken with a grain of salt. But while Trump continues to weigh launching a presidential campaign for 2024, any sign of diminishing momentum poses a challenge in gaining the support required for a successful bid.
