Elections cycles can take a lot out of us, but 2020 is well on its way. The primaries will be in full swing before we know it, so it’s probably time to start paying attention to the game. While 2016 did prove to us that polls are unreliable, we don’t really have anywhere else to start. When we look at polls for Democrats going into 2020, there’s a lot to unpack.
There are two big things to understand. First, Joe Biden is still in front. He has been since he announced, and he really is the guy to beat. The second thing to understand is that Biden doesn’t have a strong, vocal base. He’s the candidate Democrats pick when they’re not ready to embrace anyone more radical.
With that in mind, MSNBC’s new polls are interesting. They show that Biden is fast losing his lead, but they’re also MSNBC polls. How much can we really trust them? We know that the media outlet is extremely far to the left, and they would much rather see a socialist than a moderate win the nomination.
What’s useful in this poll is some of the deeper questions it answers. When you look at the more specific details provided, you can weed through some of the MSNBC bias and understand the general picture. Biden has a serious problem with the Democratic base, and it’s hard to see a route for him to overcome that problem. Take a look.
