Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg see both good and bad news in latest Quinnipiac Poll

Maureen Groppe
Updated

WASHINGTON – A new presidential poll has both good and bad news for Democratic hopefuls Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg.

A majority of Democratic voters surveyed by Quinnipiac University days after Biden launched his campaign last week said the former vice president has the best chance of beating President Donald Trump. But while Biden has homed in on Trump in his nascent campaign, 70% of Democrats said they want a candidate who focuses on other issues.

For Buttigieg, the good news in the survey released Tuesday is that 70% of all voters – including 46% of Republicans – said they are open to electing a president who is a gay man.

"The bad news for Buttigieg is that voters believe it just isn’t going to happen," said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll.

Only 36% of those surveyed said the nation is ready to send a gay man to the White House.

Buttigieg's standard response to that question is that there's only one way to find out.

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Here are other results from the poll of 1,044 voters, including 419 Democrats and Democratic leaners, conducted April 26-29. (The survey has a margin of error of 5.6 percentage points among Democratic voters and 3.5 percentage points for questions asked of all voters.)

Pete Buttigieg, Democratic presidential candidate, stands with his husband, Chasten (right), after he announced in South Bend on Sunday, April 14, 2019, that he is officially running.
Pete Buttigieg, Democratic presidential candidate, stands with his husband, Chasten (right), after he announced in South Bend on Sunday, April 14, 2019, that he is officially running.

Biden surge

The share of Democrats who named Biden as their top choice of the crowded field surged from 29% at the end of March to 38% after his announcement.

Support for Buttigieg and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren also rose, while the share of respondents backing Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Rep. Beto O'Rourke dropped. Support for California Sen. Kamala Harris and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker remained the same.

That put Warren at 12%, Sanders at 11%, Buttigieg at 10%, Harris at 8%, O'Rourke at 5% and Booker at 2%. The rest of the field polled at 1% or less.

More results: Read the full Quinnipiac Poll release.

Best chance to beat Trump

Most Democrats (56%) named Biden as the candidate with the best chance of beating Trump. The next choice, Sanders, was picked by 12%.

Biden also was viewed by 44% as the best leader and by 23% as the candidate with the best policy ideas.

But only 25% of Democrats surveyed said they want a candidate who focuses on fighting Trump, while 70% prefer a candidate who focuses on other national issues. That's a potential problem for Biden, who has made his contrast with Trump a central part of his campaign so far.

Former Vice President Joe Biden takes a selfie after speaking to a crowd of people on Tuesday, April 30, 2019, at the Veterans Memorial Building in Cedar Rapids. This is Biden's first trip to Iowa after announcing his run for president.
Former Vice President Joe Biden takes a selfie after speaking to a crowd of people on Tuesday, April 30, 2019, at the Veterans Memorial Building in Cedar Rapids. This is Biden's first trip to Iowa after announcing his run for president.

Taxing the wealthy

Warren, who came in second to Biden at having the best policy ideas, has called for a 2% levy on wealth above the $50 million mark to help pay for proposals that include universal child care, free public college and forgiveness of student loan debt.

A majority of all voters surveyed – 60% – said they would support such a "wealth tax."

A nearly equal share, however, opposed raising the top individual tax rate to 70% for those making more than $10 million. (Raising the top rate has been advocated by New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who is not running for president but is a top target of Republicans hoping to paint the Democratic Party as too liberal.)

Free college

Voters have mixed views on plans similar to Warren's call to reduce the cost of college. A slight majority oppose making all public colleges free. And while 57% support forgiving up to $50,000 in student loans for those making less than $250,000 a year, 52% said they would oppose such a plan if it were paid for through a new tax on the wealthy.

"It's almost a tossup," Malloy said. "But if a vote were taken on free public college, the educated guess is that it would go down."

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaks during a campaign rally Wednesday, April 17, 2019, in Salt Lake City.
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., speaks during a campaign rally Wednesday, April 17, 2019, in Salt Lake City.

Trump support

Among Republican or Republican leaning voters, Trump is backed by 84%. Massachusetts’ former Republican governor Bill Weld, who announced this month he will challenge Trump, got 3% support, as did Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, who is considering a bid.

But among all poll respondents, 52% said they will definitely not vote for Trump if he is the GOP nominee. Only 33% said they definitely will.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg see both good and bad news in latest Quinnipiac Poll