Biden lead over Trump rises to 14 points in new CNN poll

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden now holds a commanding 14-point lead over President Trump in his 2020 bid for the White House, according to a CNN poll released early Monday. 

The survey found that 55 percent of voters would throw their support behind the former vice president if the election were held today, while 41 percent would favor Trump. 

The findings come as the U.S. grapples with a coronavirus pandemic that has caused more than 110,000 deaths and protests sweep across the nation in response to the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. 

Biden’s new double-digit lead over Trump represents a significant improvement from a similar CNN survey conducted in May. That one showed Biden with 51 percent support and Trump with 46 percent support. 

Trump’s dip in in a head-to-head match-up against Biden in the new poll coincided with a drop in his approval rating. Just 38 percent of respondents said they approved of the way Trump is handling the presidency, a 7-point decrease from last month. Meanwhile, 57 percent said they disapproved Trump’s job performance. 

Trump’s approval rating in the CNN poll is the lowest it’s been since January 2019, the network noted. 

In addition, the new poll shows that more than 6 in 10 Americans disapprove of Trump’s handling of race relations. Sixty-five percent also said that the president’s response to the protests following Floyd’s death was more harmful than helpful.  

Trump repeatedly spoke out against the violence and looting of stores that accompanied some of the demonstrations. Last week, he threatened to deploy the U.S. military to cities that did not quell the unrest. 

The CNN survey found that an overwhelming majority of Americans (84 percent) said that they believe the protests over racial injustice and police brutality are justified. Nearly 70 percent said that the violence that has occurred is not justified, while 27 percent say it is justified. 

A slate of recent polls show Biden with a solid lead over Trump in his campaign for the White House. An NBC News-Wall Street Journal survey released on Sunday found the former vice president with a 7-point national lead over Trump. A RealClearPolitics average of polling also shows Biden with a 7-point lead. 

The new CNN survey was conducted from June 2 to June 5 among a population of 1,259 adults, including 1,125 registered voters. The full sample has a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points, and the sample of voters has a margin of error of 3.6 percentage points.