Kamala Harris is viewed much more favorably today than in May, before Joe Biden withdrew from the presidential race and Harris became the Democratic nominee.
Overall, 44% of U.S. adults have a favorable view of Harris, 8 percentage points higher than in May.
Donald Trump’s favorability rating also has improved since May, though the increase has been more modest than Harris’.
Currently, 42% have a positive opinion of the former president, up from 39% three months ago.
The improvement in Trump’s and Harris’ favorability ratings has occurred almost entirely among those in their own party. For both candidates, positive ratings among the opposing coalition remain in the single digits.
Harris and Trump have gained ground with their own coalitions
Kamala Harris
About eight-in-ten Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (83%) view Harris favorably, while just 15% have an unfavorable opinion.
That represents a notable improvement since May, when 65% of Democrats had a positive opinion of the vice president and 32% viewed her negatively.
Views of Harris among Republicans and GOP leaners remain overwhelmingly negative. Just 9% view her favorably, while 89% have an unfavorable impression.
Donald Trump
Trump’s favorable ratings among Republicans have increased 5 points since May (from 74% to 79%). Trump’s current rating among Republicans is at its highest point in at least two years.
Like Harris, Trump’s rating with the opposing party continues to be near-universally negative. About nine-in-ten Democrats (92%) have an unfavorable opinion of the former president.
Share of ‘double negatives’ drops significantly with change in presidential candidates
In May of this year, a quarter of Americans held unfavorable views of Trump and Biden – the highest share expressing negative views of both major party candidates in more than three decades.
However, since Harris replaced Biden as the 2024 Democratic nominee – and with the improvement in both Harris’ and Trump’s favorable ratings – the share of these “double negatives” has declined substantially.
Today, 14% of Americans, including comparable shares of Republicans (14%) and Democrats (12%), hold negative views of both Trump and Harris.
Views of Biden have changed little since his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race
Joe Biden remains broadly unpopular with the public: 62% of Americans have an unfavorable opinion of the president, while 37% view him favorably. Biden’s ratings have changed little over the past year.
Biden’s favorable rating among Democrats has edged up since May, from 67% to 70%. His rating among Republicans remains overwhelmingly negative (93% unfavorable) and is essentially unchanged.
