With less than a month to go before the election, a majority of registered voters (57%) say they are very or somewhat confident in Biden to handle the public health impact of the coronavirus, while 40% express a similar level of confidence in Trump. In June, Biden held a narrower, 11 percentage point lead on handling the coronavirus outbreak (52% Biden, 41% Trump)…

The share of Biden supporters who back him strongly has increased since August, though he still trails Trump in strong support. A 57% majority of voters who favor Biden say they support him strongly. Biden drew strong backing from fewer than half of his supporters (46%) two months ago. About two-thirds of those who back Trump (68%) say they support him strongly.

As was the case in the summer, voters’ preferences – regardless of whom they favor – remain very much centered on Trump. Just 36% of Biden voters view their vote more as an expression of support for the former vice president; 63% view it as vote against Trump. By contrast, 71% of Trump supporters say their vote is a vote for Trump. These views have changed only modestly since June.