Less than half say they trust Trump, Biden on coronavirus info: poll

Less than half of Americans say they trust coronavirus information from either President Trump or Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, although more trust Biden, according to a new Axios-Ipsos poll.

Forty-six percent of respondents said they trust Biden on the issue compared to 31 percent who said they trust Trump. A sharp partisan divide exists for both candidates.

Eighty percent of respondents who identified as Democrats versus 12 percent who identified as Republicans said they trust Biden, compared to 69 percent of Republicans and 7 percent of Democrats who said they trust the president.

Forty-three percent of independents polled said they trust Biden on the issue versus 27 percent who said they trust the president.

Meanwhile, over one-third of independents said they trust neither candidate on the issue.

Close to 70 percent of all respondents said they either do not trust the president at all or very much, the majority of which fall in the “at all” category. About a third of all respondents said they do not trust Biden at all, a smaller share than those who said the same about the president.

The survey also found a number of respondents that said they are planning to vote.

Twenty-four percent of the respondents who are registered voters said they have already requested an absentee ballot, while 14 percent said their state will automatically send them one through the mail. Twenty-nine percent of independents, 28 percent of Democrats and 15 percent of Republicans said they have requested an absentee ballot.

The survey also found 58 percent of respondents know someone who has tested positive for the coronavirus and close to a quarter, 22 percent, said they know someone who has died from it. Twenty-five percent of respondents said they themselves have been tested for the virus.

The poll found a majority had less confidence in a first-generation vaccine for the virus than for a flu shot. Forty-eight percent of those surveyed said they would take a vaccine as soon as it becomes available, compared to 62 percent who said they are somewhat or very likely to get a flu shot in the fall or winter.

Pollsters conducted the survey Aug. 21-24 using a nationally representative probability sample of 1,084 adults. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.