Despite early doubts that he wouldn’t be able to galvanize support, Joe Biden has seen a huge surge in the polls. Many analysts have worried that Biden is out of touch with the increasingly liberal and progressive Democratic Party and that firebrands like Bernie Sanders would be able to muster more support.
However, a Quinnipiac University Poll found that Biden has a 26-point lead over his closest rivals. Biden enjoys support among 38 percent of Democrats, while Elizabeth Warren comes in second with just 12 percent. Bernie Sanders managed to drum up support among just 11 percent.
Some are claiming, however, that mainstream media websites and pollsters could be trying to skew numbers in Biden’s favor. Allegedly, polls are overrepresenting older voters and underrepresenting younger voters. Younger voters may be more likely to support more progressive candidates like Bernie Sanders.
So far, Biden’s campaign has tried to paint the former vice president as the only realistic option for unseating Republican President Donald Trump. Far-left liberal opponents, Biden’s team has warned, won’t be able to attract enough centrist Democrats and independent voters to beat Trump in the Presidential election.
While other Democrats have been positioning themselves as change candidates, Biden is taking a more establishment-oriented approach. And while many Democrats have pledged not to accept donations from lobbyists and the like, one of Biden’s first moves was to host a fundraiser attended by lobbyists and private-sector leaders.
In fact, his first fundraiser was hosted by David Cohen, a Comcast executive, who has been donating heavily to GOP candidates. Comcast has seen its policy objectives, including the repeal of net neutrality, advance under the Trump administration.
Biden has claimed that he will reject money from federal lobbyists; but in practice, he seems open to accepting cash from unregistered lobbyists and state lobbyists. Kamala Harris, Beto O’Rourke, and Cory Booker have likewise accepted money from lobbyists who were not registered with the federal government.
