Voters Favor Biden on Virus, Trump on Economy

Voters faced a public health crisis and a wounded economy in the US presidential election, but neither candidate emerged as a strong choice to overcome any of these issues, according to AP Votecast.

More voters — both nationwide and in crucial battlefields — said former Vice President Joe Biden will be better able to cope with the coronavirus pandemic, the top concern of some 4 in 10 voters. But President Donald Trump sidelined Biden on the issue of who would be better off restoring an economy besieged by nearly 11 million job losses, and small businesses staring into a dark winter. Approximately three in ten voters nationally ranked the economy as the most pressing issue.

The question of whether the pandemic or the economy was more important to the electorate was a heated debate in the campaign. Trump claimed that the country could not be the target of the epidemic and insisted, without evidence, that the nation was "turning around." Biden cautioned that the economy would never be completely recovered until the coronavirus was first controlled and companies could fully re-open.

The majority of the electorate were open to this claim. Approximately 6 in 10 voters said that the higher priority of the government should be to restrict the spread of coronavirus, even if it damages the economy.

AP VoteCast is a nationwide survey of more than 132,000 voters and non-voters conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago for The Associated Press.

Despite months of controversy, three-quarters of all voters said they all knew who they supported. And Trump weighed heavily on their minds — two-thirds said that their vote was motivated by their impression of the untraditional president, either for or against.

Trump's supporters largely backed their president. Around 8 in 10 said that their vote was in favor of him, not in opposition to Biden. Meanwhile, Biden voters were closely divided about whether they primarily favored Biden or opposed Trump by voting for the president.

Millions of voters rushed to cast their ballots early and did so with a clear sense of anxiety and worry. About 6 in 10 voters — including most Biden voters and about a quarter of Trump voters — said they think things in the country are on the wrong track.

Trump's campaign sought to make the management of the economy the best selling point for his re-election, an uphill struggle as unemployment soared to double digits this spring. Recently, a comeback showed signs of stalling when federal funding lapsed because the Trump administration and the House Democrats were unable to find an agreement. Just about four in ten voters said the economy was good or great, with the rest defining the conditions as not so good or poor.

Trump continued to draw support from a coalition of white men, white voters without a college degree and those living in small towns and rural communities. Biden enjoyed more backing from women, college graduates and Black, Hispanic and Asian voters.

The coronavirus outbreak has claimed more than 230,000 American lives and has been surging across the country in recent weeks. Still, voters were divided on whether the nation has contained the spread of the virus. About half of voters said the virus is at least somewhat under control, while roughly half described the coronavirus as out of control.

Voters in key swing states expressed anxieties about and spread of the virus. In Wisconsin, which saw an October increase in cases, nearly half of the voters said the pandemic was the country's top concern, and about six in ten said it was not under control. Approximately two-thirds said that the government should offer priority to stopping its spread even if it means economic pain.

About half of Wisconsin voters said that Biden would do a superior job of combating the virus, roughly the same as in Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Trump had an edge in stewarding the economy, with roughly half of voters in these states saying he would do better than Biden.

More than 100 million Americans rushed to vote early and by mail, taking advantage of new rules intended to make voting safer and easier during the pandemic. Trump has sought to sow doubt about the new voting systems and the legitimacy of the count, and claimed without evidence that some voters would cheat. The survey found about 3 in 10 expressing doubts that their votes would be accurately counted.

Concerns about voting were somewhat higher in Pennsylvania, another key state in the election, compared with other states: 36% were not confident the vote count would be accurate.

Tensions over structural racism increased this summer after the police killings of several Black Americans, setting off peaceful protests and in some cases riots, looting and violence. Trump positioned himself as a defender of police and cast the protesters as radicals — part of an appeal to suburban and older voters who he thought would embrace a law and order message.

Nationally, about three-quarters of voters called prejudice a major problem for society as a whole and for the police in particular. About a quarter said they needed the police to be harder on the crime; about a third said the police were too harsh.

Most significantly, the plurality of voters in two states — Wisconsin and Minnesota — disapproved of police demonstrations. Both states saw abuse and destruction during protests following the killing of Black men by the police.