CNN Analyst: Trump More Popular Today than in 2016, 2020

By Wendell Husebø

President Donald Trump is more popular in August 2024, than he was in August of 2016 and 2020, CNN analyst Harry Enten revealed Tuesday.

• The findings suggest Trump has a significant chance to complete the greatest comeback story in modern American politics, despite Vice President Kamala Harris’s recent surge in the polls.

  Trump’s favorability rating compared to the last two election cycles:

  • August, 2024: 44 percent

  • August, 2020: 41 percent

  • August, 2016: 33 percent

  “The bottom line is Kamal Harris is doing better in the polls but there is a long way to go,” Enten said. “The polls can shift”

  Enten also pointed out enthusiasm among Democrats to vote for Harris dropped one point (61 percent) compared to enthusiasm among Democrat voters in May for Biden (62 percent).

  In contrast, enthusiasm among Republicans to vote for Trump increased two points from May (58 percent) to August (60 percent).

  3 caution points for Democrats…
  
  1. Trump wins if the difference between the polls at this point & the result matches what we saw in 2016 or 2020.
  
  2. Trump's more popular now than at this pt in 2016 or 2020.
  
  3. Dems don't say they're more likely to vote now than in May pic.twitter.com/E0zfPCyKS9
  
  — (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) August 13, 2024

  The findings appear to confirm that Trump’s favorability and approval ratings approached their highest mark on record, according to RealClearPolitics and FiveThirtyEight.

  Trump’s favorability rating in the RealClearPolitics average is less than one point below his highest approval rating, marked in April, Breitbart reported last week, while Trump’s approval rating in FiveThirtyEight average is also less than one point behind his greatest approval rating, notched in February.

  Trump’s popularity comes on the back of several federal legal battles, a conviction in New York State court, and a failed assassination attempt against his life, earning him the nickname, “Teflon Don.”

  Americans reflect positively upon his presidency, additional polling shows. It appears the longer Trump is out of office, the more Americans view his presidency positively, the New York Times reported in April, based on a Times and Siena College survey.