Almost half of American voters would give serious thought to casting a ballot for a third-party candidate if President Biden and former President Donald Trump are the Democratic and Republican nominees next year, according to a new poll.
The survey released on Tuesday by NewsNation and Decision Desk HQ found that 49% of registered voters said they were “very likely” or “somewhat likely” to consider picking someone else instead of Biden, 80, or Trump, 76.
Trump is the front-runner in an increasingly crowded GOP primary field that includes Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and radio talk show host Larry Elder.
The incumbent Biden, who is facing long-shot primary challenges from self-help author Marianne Williamson and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is expected to sail to the Democratic nomination.
When asked who they would choose as their alternate to Biden and Trump, 20% picked socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Other popular choices included former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo., 10%) and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV, 7%). Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang, and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) all got 5% support. Jo Jorgensen, the Libertarian Party’s 2020 presidential nominee, brought up the rear with 4% support.
A plurality of respondents, 43%, said they would pick someone else as their third party candidate.
When asked who they most wanted to see run for president, respondents were most likely to pick former first lady Michelle Obama (17%), followed by Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg (8%), California Gov. Gavin Newsom (7%), and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (6%).
The poll also found that younger and non-white voters were more likely to consider a third-party option in the event of a Biden-Trump rematch.
Only 32% of people over 55 said they would consider voting for a third party compared to 61% of individuals between the ages of 18 and 34. Among voters 35 through 55, 60% said they might vote for a third-party candidate over Trump or Biden.
Nearly two-thirds of African-Americans (65%) said they would consider a third-party candidate, making them the most likely racial group to break party ranks. Whites were the least likely, with only 45% saying they would consider voting for a non-Trump or Biden candidate, while 62% of Asians and 63% of Hispanics said they would consider a third-party candidate as well.
The online survey of 1,000 registered voters, conducted May 25 and 26, found that 51% said they were “not very likely” or “not likely at all” to vote third party over Biden or Trump.
On Monday, prominent left-wing activist and professor Cornel West launched an independent 2024 presidential campaign
West, 70, called his candidacy a “quest for justice” and vowed that he would “go down fighting.”