The former is up 13 points from May 2023, while the latter is up even more – by 23 points.
Those numbers aren’t where Biden was late in his presidency, when he was in the 60s on both measures. But the percentage who doubts Trump’s mental sharpness (56%) is actually similar to where Biden was at this point in his term. In February 2022, Biden was at 54% on this question.
And, finally, is a Pew Research Center survey conducted last month.
It showed the percentage of Americans who are at least “very confident” that Trump has the mental fitness to do the job dropping from 39% a year ago to 32% today.
The percentage who are at least “very confident” that he has the physical fitness has dropped from 35% to 28%.
And similar to the Reuters-Ipsos poll, the numbers among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents should raise some eyebrows. The percentage of them who are “very confident” in Trump’s mental fitness has dropped from 75% to 66%. On physical fitness, he’s dropped from 65% to 55%.
So in both the Reuters and Pew polls, we’re seeing 3 in 10 people (or more) in Trump’s own base express some concern about this issue.
Again, Biden had worse numbers overall. By April 2024, the percentage of voters saying they were “very confident” was only 21% for mental fitness and 15% for physical fitness. CNN polling showed as much as half of his base said Biden didn’t have the requisite stamina and sharpness.
But why might Trump’s numbers on these measures be worsening?
One explanation is that they’re simply falling alongside his popularity. As people sour on Trump overall, perhaps they’re more likely to view his often-strange public performances in a more negative light.
But we’re also seeing these concerns register even with some Americans who are more inclined to view Trump favorably. It’s certainly possible that his verbal stumbles — things like repeatedly mixing up Iceland and Greenland — are registering. It’s also possible that scrutiny of bruises on Trump’s hands and whether he’s fallen asleep during public events — as well as the White House’s slow disclosures about his medical testing and his more limited public schedule — are leading some people to raise more questions than they otherwise might.
Regardless, what’s clear is that the oldest president ever elected is now having to deal with this issue, just like the previous holder of that title did a few years ago.
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