At a weekend fund-raising retreat in South Florida, several governors, candidates for governor and donors acknowledged that voters’ frustration with the lingering pandemic was damaging the party more than expected. They hoped that Mr. Biden’s State of the Union address might serve as a pivot point, coming at the convergence of three major events that could reorder the existing political landscape: the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Mr. Biden’s first Supreme Court nomination and the loosening of many coronavirus restrictions.

“The environment is not where we want it to be right now,” said Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina, the chairman of the Democratic Governors Association, which organized the event. “But I believe it’s going to get substantially better.”…

In informal poolside chats and closed-door political strategy sessions, attendees considered what could be done to change the trajectory of the president’s standing and the Democratic brand. A Washington Post-ABC News Poll on Sunday showed Mr. Biden with a 37 percent overall approval rating, a new low, and a 30 percent support among independents.