IOWA CITY, IOWA — Americans in Iowa told Fox News Digital they believe President Biden deserves a primary challenger in 2024.
Fox News Digital asked people on the streets of Iowa City, Iowa, if they believe the president deserves to have someone challenge him for the Democratic ticket in the upcoming election.
“I absolutely do. I think I didn’t see enough action in these past four years to deserve re-election at this point yet,” one student at the University of Iowa said. “Even though I am hardcore Democrat, it doesn’t excite me.”
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“Yeah, I think everyone should get a challenger,” another student said. “I mean, what’s the point of having candidates if we’re not going to have people that go up against them?”
“So I think obviously he needs a challenger for sure, and he could use a challenge to bring up some new ideas, as well,” he added.
Many people cited Biden’s age as a reason for their support of a primary challenger against the president.
“I think there’s a lot of questions about his age,” one person said. “And I think that some people, especially on both sides of the political spectrum, would like to see a challenger.”
“I personally would like to see Democrats put somebody else forward, as well,” he continued. “Somebody younger.”
Another student said she thinks “we need more young people” and that her “biggest thing is having a president that old is kind of unprecedented.”
“So, I don’t know. I think we should give it to young people at this time,” she continued.
“Yes, I think he needs one,” another student said. “I think he’s too old to be in office still, in my opinion.”
Another person said she believes Biden was “the perfect candidate to beat out President Trump,” but the president has “gotten a lot older” and she believes a “fresher face” should challenge him.
Others didn’t believe Biden deserved a primary challenger, with one person telling Fox News Digital the president “has done an excellent job.”
“He has rebuilt the NATO alliance in Ukraine, he’s threaded the needle on the economy to keep us from going into recession while getting a handle on inflation, his environmental record is solid,” he said.
“He’s been an excellent president,” he added.
Fox News Digital also asked the respondents who they believed will take the Republican nomination for president.
Both former President Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis were mentioned, as well as GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
Biden is already facing down two primary challengers: environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and author Marianne Williamson.
The president does have some breathing room, though: the Democratic National Committee (DNC) announced they would not be having a primary election debate this cycle.
The president’s numbers against his primary challengers aren’t looking good – a recent Fox News poll showed nearly 30% of Democrat primary voters are backing Kennedy and Williamson combined.
Additionally, a new poll from The Associated Press and the National Opinion Research Center (AP-NORC) at the University of Chicago found that Biden has just 33% approval when it comes to economic issues, and Americans are similarly skeptical of his ability to handle guns and immigration, at just 31% for both issues.
Meanwhile, Biden’s overall approval rating is sitting at 40%, according to the poll, which was released Monday. The figure marks a rise compared to earlier this year, when Biden faced numbers as low as 36%.
AP-NORC conducted the poll from May 11-15, surveying some 1,680 U.S. adults, and reported a margin of error of 3.4%.
Biden’s poor numbers on immigration and the economy come as his administration faces backlash for the end of Title 42. Illegal immigration has surged to record-breaking numbers under the president.
When Biden entered office in 2021, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) tracked some 100,000 encounters each month. By last fall, however, that number had risen to well over 230,00. CBP agents tracked more than 250,000 border crossings for multiple months.
Meanwhile, Trump has long polled better than Biden on economic issues and immigration, with Americans more confident in his ability to handle inflation.
Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom contributed reporting.
