This effort raises an fascinating query: Do Individuals view Biden as disproportionately outdated in comparison with Trump? He’s barely older than his predecessor within the presidency, and is 80 years outdated. Trump is 77 years outdated. Is a part of the blended response relating to their ages as a consequence of Individuals assuming that Biden is far older or that Trump is definitely a lot youthful than every of them?
YouGov’s joint ballot with The Washington Put up solutions this query: No.
YouGov offered quite a few elected officers to a nationwide group of members, who have been requested to guess the politicians’ ages inside a variety of 18 to 120 years. For Biden, the median guess got here out at 79 years outdated, which is slightly below his precise age, whereas the median — the purpose at which half the guesses have been increased and half the guesses decrease — was proper at 80 years outdated. Guesses about Trump’s age have been equally shut; The imply was decrease by one 12 months and the median by three.
As for different politicians and candidates, the guesses have been far off. On common, the common response from YouGov survey respondents was about 5.6 years away from the candidate’s precise age. This has been pushed increased by three particular candidates: Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who has been perceived as youthful than he truly is, and by 2024 Republican presidential candidates Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Vivek Ramaswamy. Every one in every of them was seen as older than his years.
A couple of third of these requested to guess Biden’s age put it on the right variety of 80. Estimates observe a tough bell curve, rising earlier than and after age 80. (Some members, who did not take the entire thing significantly, estimated he was 120 years outdated — or 18.) The reply curve for Trump was barely smaller — as a result of Trump is youthful and since the guesses have been extra more likely to underestimate his age.
Curiously, there may be not a lot partisan division on this problem. Essentially the most extensively guessed age for Biden and Trump amongst Democrats and Republicans was their precise age.
Nevertheless, you possibly can see within the picture above that the guesswork amongst Republicans is shifting barely to the correct for Biden – i.e. older – and barely to the left for Trump. The typical estimate of every presidential candidate’s age was wider amongst Republicans than amongst Democrats, six versus two years.
However Republicans’ common guesses have been extra correct, thanks largely to their right estimate of Biden’s age.
That is largely an mental train, and some extent of numerical curiosity. Nevertheless, it gives some unhealthy information for Biden, as a result of it means that Individuals perceive that Trump is nearly as outdated as Biden — they usually nonetheless view his age with much more concern than they do the Republican nominee’s age.