The polls create a delicate challenge for the Biden administration, which never regained its political standing since the rise of the Delta variant dashed last summer’s hopes of a return to normalcy. The growing unease with the pandemic seems to have added to the president’s political woes, and may help explain why the public disapproves of Mr. Biden’s handling of the coronavirus for the first time.

But a majority of Democratic-leaning voters continue to support a more vigorous response to the pandemic, potentially limiting how quickly the administration can readjust to public opinion. Many Americans harbor serious concerns about the health risks presented by the virus; the Biden administration may not find it easy to bring them along, at least as long as cases and deaths remain at elevated levels.

And while a majority of voters may be itching for a return to normalcy, the public does not necessarily want an immediate end to pandemic-related measures. While a new Axios/Ipsos poll found that a majority of voters wanted to “move toward opening up,” less than half of those respondents — or just 21 percent of all Americans — said they supported going back to life as usual with “no coronavirus mandates or requirements.”