Military Times poll: Trump trails Biden by nearly 6 points among active-duty troops
Despite Trump's military fetish, his approval rating among troops has steadily dropped during his term, polls show
ROGER SOLLENBERGER
AUGUST 31, 2020 6:21PM (UTC)
A new Military Times poll shows that active-duty service members' opinions of President Trump continue to drop, while Democratic nominee Joe Biden enjoys a lead among the traditionally conservative demographic.
The poll, conducted earlier in August before either political party held its convention, appears to contradict the president's frequent boasts that members of the military favor him because of defense budget increases, his alleged tough stance on international terrorist organizations and his promises to decrease the presence of U.S. troops overseas.
Military Times polling has in fact shown a steady decline in active-duty troops' opinion of their commander in chief over the course of his term. The latest round — a survey of more than 1,000 troops — found that 49.9% hold an unfavorable view of the president, and 42% said they "strongly" disapprove of Trump's time in office. About 38% of respondents say they hold a favorable view of Trump. (The poll had a 2% margin of error.)
The results also found that 43.1% of troops surveyed said they would vote for Biden if the election were held today, as opposed to 37.4% who said that they would vote to re-elect Trump. About 12.8% of respondents said they would vote third-party, and 9% said they would not vote at all.
Read more: https://www.salon.com/2020/08/31/military-times-poll-trump-trails-biden-by-nearly-6-points-among-active-duty-troops/