A recent survey found that a significant portion of voters in the United States believe neither President Biden nor former President Donald Trump has the necessary mental and cognitive health to serve as president. While partisanship plays a role in these perceptions, many independents are faced with a tough tradeoff when deciding who to vote for, as they feel both candidates lack the cognitive ability to serve effectively.
Interestingly, Trump is perceived to have better cognitive ability than Biden, with about half of voters believing Trump has the necessary skills compared to only about a third who think Biden does. Despite doubts about Biden’s capacity to serve, some Democrats are still choosing to vote for him over Trump, contributing to his lower overall numbers.
Independents seem to view Trump as having better mental and cognitive health than Biden, and this is reflected in their voting behavior. Most independents who doubt Biden’s cognitive health are backing Trump, while those who doubt Trump’s cognitive health are supporting Biden.
The survey was conducted by CBS News/YouGov with a sample of 2,063 U.S. adults between June 5-7, 2024. The data was weighted by gender, age, race, education, and past vote. The margin of error is ±3.2 points among all adults and ±3.8 points among registered voters.
