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Poll shows Biden with 10-point lead over Trump

This article is more than 12 months old

NEW YORK: Democrat Joe Biden opened his widest lead in a month in the US presidential race after President Donald Trump tested positive for the coronavirus.

Most Americans think Mr Trump could have avoided infection if he had taken the virus more seriously, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released yesterday.

The Oct 2-3 national opinion poll gave little indication of an outpouring of support for the President beyond Mr Trump's core group of followers, some of whom have gathered outside Walter Reed National Military Medical Centre, where he has been hospitalised.

Among those adults who are expected to cast ballots in the Nov 3 election, the poll found that 51 per cent were backing Mr Biden, while 41 per cent said they were voting for Mr Trump.

Another 4 per cent were choosing a third-party candidate and another 4 per cent said they were undecided.

Mr Biden's 10-point edge over Mr Trump is one to two points higher than leads Mr Biden posted over the past several weeks, though the increase is still within the poll's precision limits of plus or minus five percentage points.

Most Americans continue to be deeply worried about the virus, and the poll found that 65 per cent, including nine in 10 registered Democrats and five in 10 registered Republicans, agreed that "if President Trump had taken coronavirus more seriously, he probably would not have been infected".

Only 34 per cent thought Mr Trump has been telling them the truth about the coronavirus, while 55 per cent said that he was not and 11 per cent were unsure.

Of those polled, 57 per cent of Americans disapproved of Mr Trump's response to the pandemic, up about three points from a poll that ran late last week.

Americans also appear to be largely supportive of curtailing the 2020 presidential race to ensure everyone's safety.

Sixty-seven per cent of Americans want to stop in-person campaign rallies and 59 per cent think the presidential debates should be postponed until Mr Trump recovers. - REUTERS

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