More Voters Expect a Stronger Debate for Trump Than for Biden, Poll Shows

Expectations are higher for former President Donald J. Trump than for President Biden in Thursday night’s presidential debate, according to a new poll by The New York Times and Siena College.

The national survey, conducted in the days before the debate, found that 60 percent of registered voters thought Mr. Trump would perform “very” or “somewhat” well in the matchup. Only 46 percent said the same about Mr. Biden.

Overall, nearly half of voters anticipated a poor showing for Mr. Biden, signaling that the president enters the televised event facing widespread skepticism and scrutiny over his ability to demonstrate his fitness for office.

The debate will be the first time the two men will share a stage since October 2020, when they participated in the final debate of that year’s presidential race. It will be the earliest presidential debate in the nation’s history, occurring at the start of the summer rather than in the fall when the debates typically begin, and with a notably different format.

Nearly three-quarters of the participants in the poll said they planned to watch the debate. Republicans expressed the most enthusiasm: Eighty-three percent of Republican voters said they planned to watch, compared with 74 percent of Democrats and 70 percent of independents.

Melinda Cassetta, a federal employee from Clarksville, Md., said she was excited to see the matchup between the president and his predecessor.