Former First Lady Michelle Obama, despite never expressing any desire to run for office, is seen as the only Democratic candidate who would easily beat former President Donald Trump in a head-to-head matchup, according to a new poll.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll released Tuesday shows Michelle, 60, leading Trump, 78, by 11 percentage points, 50% to 39%, among registered voters.
Other matchups show Biden tied with Trump at 40% each, while Trump narrowly beats Vice President Kamala Harris by 43% to 42%. Trump also leads against potential Democratic replacements for Biden, including California’s Gavin Newsom, Michigan’s Gretchen Whitmer, Kentucky’s Andy Beshear, and Illinois’ J.B. Pritzker.
Michelle Obama, who remains popular among voters according to the Reuters/Ipsos survey, has kept her distance from the first family throughout Biden’s re-election campaign. She has maintained close ties with Hunter Biden’s ex-wife, Kathleen Buhle, during the Obama administration, and is reportedly upset about her friend’s exclusion by the first family. In a 2022 interview, Michelle explicitly declined to endorse Biden’s re-election campaign.
Barack Obama has been actively supporting Biden throughout the 2024 election cycle, most recently at a July 15 fundraiser in Los Angeles. However, he was critical of Biden’s performance against Trump in a June 27 CNN-hosted debate, urging Democrats to continue supporting Biden while privately expressing doubts about Biden’s chances.
Despite these concerns, Biden is expected to be the Democratic nominee in 2024 unless he steps down voluntarily. On Wednesday, Biden reassured his campaign staff of his intentions to stay in the race but reportedly expressed concerns about his future if his polling numbers continue to decline.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll indicates that more than half (56%) of Americans believe Biden should drop out, while 46% think Trump should suspend his campaign. The poll, conducted July 1-2, surveyed 1,070 US adults, including 892 registered voters, with margins of error of plus or minus 3.2 percentage points for all respondents and 3.5 percentage points for registered voters.
