Democrats Are Changing Their Minds About Donald Trump

Democrats may be changing their minds about former President Donald Trump ahead of the 2024 presidential election, according to a new poll.

Trump has long received low marks from Democrats, who have long opposed him on a wide range of issues including immigration, abortion rights and the economy, but a Harvard/Harris CAPS poll released this week found that Democrats’ general approval of the former president has risen since he left office in January 2021.

The survey comes amid a tense battle for the presidency, as Trump continues to hold a substantial polling lead in the Republican primary race over former South Carolina Governor and ex-United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley. After securing wins in key early voting states, Trump appears favored to win the nomination, likely setting up a rematch against President Joe Biden for November, even as many voters have expressed desire for new leadership in the Oval Office.

Twenty-nine percent of Democrats said they either “somewhat” or “strongly” approve of “the job that Donald Trump did as president,” according to the poll, which surveyed 2,022 voters from February 21 to 22.

This is still a relatively low number, as 70 percent of Democrats still said they disapproved of Trump’s presidential job performance.

But it represents a shift from January 2020, when the Harvard/Harris CAPS poll posed the same question in their monthly poll. That survey was released at roughly the same point in Trump’s presidency as the latest poll was in Biden’s term.

At that point, only 14 percent of Democrats said they approved of Trump’s job performance. That poll surveyed 2,527 voters from January 27 to 29, 2020. The margin of error was not published alongside the polls.

The poll serves as the latest warning sign for Biden as he aims to secure victory in the November election.

Biden has seen low poll numbers in a head-to-head against Trump in recent surveys, has faced progressive backlash over his handling of the war between Israel and Hamas that threatens to hurt his campaign in key states, and has fielded questions about his age.

Biden’s supporters, however, note that it remains early in the campaign season and that they believe Democrats will ultimately reject Trump at the ballot box in November, while also maintaining that Biden remains fit to serve.

Republicans have also raised questions about Trump as a candidate, with some warning that his legal strife could chip away at his popularity, particularly if he is convicted of a crime before November. While Trump has been charged in four separate criminal cases, he maintains his innocence and has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Critics have also raised questions about Trump’s mental fitness.

The most recent poll found that Republicans hold a more negative view of Biden than Democrats do of Trump. Only 11 percent of Republicans said they approve of Biden’s job performance.

Thirty-nine percent of independent voters said they approve of Biden’s job performance. But in January 2020, 42 percent of independent voters said they approved of Trump’s job performance, according to the set of polls.

Newsweek reached out to the Biden and Trump campaigns for comment via email on Monday.