Sanders campaign manager knocks ‘suspect’ polls showing Biden as front-runner

Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-Vt.) presidential campaign manager knocked polls showing former Vice President Joe Biden as the front-runner in the 2020 Democratic field, saying in a new interview that the surveys don’t accurately reflect voters’ opinions. 

Faiz Shakir told Status Coup that polls are often skewed toward older voters, which aren’t strong Sanders supporters. 

“Obviously we know the senator’s strength tends to come from younger voters, and those younger voters are often underrepresented in these landline-based polls,” Shakir told the progressive digital media firm.

“And if those polls are not doing a good job of trying to account for young people, or figuring out different ways to reach them, then those, by our own estimation, should be deemed a bit suspect,” he added.{mosads}

Shakir also said that journalists tend to focus on what he feels are skewed poll results “without really anyone questioning some of these basic factors that you and I are discussing.” 

Biden has topped many recent polls of the race, with Sanders typically trailing behind in the No. 2 slot. The former vice president has 33 percent support in a RealClearPolitics average of recent polling, compared to Sanders’s 17 percent. 

Recent polls have shown other candidates, notably Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), closing in on Sanders while Biden’s support dips.  

A Morning Consult survey released Monday found a drop in support for Biden since he announced his campaign, from 43 percent to 37 percent.