Is Joe Biden the Democrat's Jeb Bush?

There was a time in the not-so-distant past when Joe Biden was the man to beat in the race to win the Democratic nomination. Name recognition, likability, electability, or his eight years of service as Barack Obama’s lieutenant, meant that Biden’s poll numbers were sky-high and the former vice president was the indisputable frontrunner. A poll last month put Biden on 38 per cent – 19 percentage points higher than his nearest competitor. “Middle Class Joe”, it seemed, had the nomination in the bag. But then the Democratic debates took place. And Biden’s desperate slump began.

Since the June 27 Democratic hustings in Florida, Biden has been losing support. After the debate, Biden’s numbers dropped by 10 percentage points, according to a CNN survey published yesterday. Senator Kamala Harris’s numbers, in contrast, shot up like a rocket from eight per cent to 17 per cent.