After Biden's debate performance, the presidential race is unchanged
NPRAfter Biden's debate performance, the presidential race is unchanged Loading. The race for the presidency remains statistically tied despite President Biden’s dismal debate performance two weeks ago, a new national NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll finds. A race likely to be decided on the margins Since the debate, on average, polls have shown Biden slipping a couple of points, but pollsters generally say it takes a couple of weeks for public opinion to settle after a major political event — and the changes have been within the margin of error. Plus, while some Democratic leaders have called for Biden to step aside — and an even larger number are very concerned about his chances — there has also been significant pushback from many rank-and-file voters on the left, who see unbalanced media scrutiny since the debate on Biden’s flaws as compared to Trump’s. Third parties pull younger voters, Biden doing better with those most likely to vote When third parties are factored in, Trump and Biden are statistically tied, with Trump at 43% and Biden 42%.