How many people supported Trump? How many voted for Trump as the lesser of two evils? Doing so doesn’t mean they supported Trump, he just happened to be the candidate they wanted to lose the least among the two major candidates. Although many wanted both to lose.
2016 46.1% voted for Trump over Clinton who received 48.3%, But 25% of the entire electorate disliked, disapproved, didn’t want neither Trump nor Clinton as their next president which included 54% of all independents which eventually went to Trump 46-42 with 12% voting third party against both. Third party voters in 2016, 5.7% of all those who voted. Voter turnout was a low 52% using VAP, 137 million which is hard telling how many of that 25% which disliked and didn’t want neither Trump nor Clinton as the next president stayed home, saying to hades with it, not bothering to vote.
In 2020, 46.9% voted for Trump, 51.3% for Biden, third party vote 1.8%, voter turnout, a high 62% using VAP, 160 million. Independents voted for Biden 54-41 over Trump with 5% voting third party against both. The dislike and unwanted factor for both major party candidates dropped to 12% down from 25% in 2016. That helps explain the high voter turnout which this country hasn’t seen since the 1960’s.
This year against Biden Trump has failed to top 47%, his largest lead against Biden 44-39. His highest percentage against Biden was 44.2%. Keep in mind in the Biden vs. Trump rematch the third-party vote was between 12-15%. Against Harris, Trump’s high was 46.1% of the vote. He still hasn’t topped 47% either in 2016, 2020 or this year. Trump’s high against Harris 45.1%.
I’d like to give you the percentage of those voters who disliked and don’t want neither Harris nor Trump as the next president this year. But neither Gallup nor Pew Research has released a poll showing that. In the Biden vs. Trump rematch, the percentage who disliked and didn’t want neither Trump nor Biden as the next president was at 29%. I assume that’s been cut in half if not dropping more since Harris replaced Biden.
The point of this outside of Trump may have a threshold of 47% of all voters is that many who voted for Trump and support him this year view him as the lesser of two evils, the candidate they want to lose the least. Not that they want him, he’s viewed as the least worse major party candidate. I’d estimate given the numbers, these and more, that less than 40% of this nation is MAGA, 100% Trumpsters or die hard Trump supporters. But that doesn’t mean Trump won’t receive a much higher vote total due to those who vote for who they view as the lesser of two evils or the candidate they dislike and don’t want the least. Keep in mind that independents now make up 41% of the electorate, they became independents because they disliked both major parties.
