According to a recent ABC News/Ipsos poll, Americans are divided on who they trust to lead the country, as President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump prepare for a potential 2024 election showdown. The poll, conducted using Ipsos' Knowledge Panel, reveals that 36% of Americans trust Trump to do a better job as president, while 33% trust Biden and 30% trust neither candidate.

The data shows that Republicans have more trust in Trump, with 82% believing he would lead the country better, compared to 72% of Democrats who trust Biden. Among independents, the split is even closer, with 32% trusting Biden, 31% trusting Trump, and 37% having faith in neither candidate.

Notably, both candidates have similar favorability ratings, albeit relatively low. 33% of Americans have a favorable impression of Biden, while 29% feel the same way about Trump. Surprisingly, over one-fifth of the population (21%) holds an unfavorable view of both current and former presidents.

The poll highlights the significance of this group and their voting behavior in determining the outcome of the 2024 election. Among those who view both candidates unfavorably, a large majority (72%) express a lack of trust in either candidate to effectively lead the country. Only 19% trust Trump, while a mere 9% trust Biden.

Biden recently delivered his third State of the Union address, in which he made a forceful case for his second term and highlighted his achievements. According to the poll, 29% of Americans found his speech better than expected, while 12% thought it was worse, and 24% had no opinion as they had not seen, read, or heard about it. Among those who did engage with the address, 44% found it better than expected, while 18% had a less favorable impression.

Interestingly, when evaluating how both presidents handled major issues such as the economy, inflation, crime, and immigration, Americans graded Trump more favorably than Biden. Trump received higher marks on the economy (49% to 37%), inflation (45% to 31%), crime (41% to 35%), and immigration and the situation at the U.S.-Mexico border (45% to 29%).

However, Biden outperformed Trump on climate change (42% to 33%) and abortion (47% to 35%). Among those who view both candidates unfavorably, 36% approved of Biden's handling of abortion. On the other hand, Biden's approval ratings for his response to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas deteriorated from 41% in October to 30% in the latest poll.

It is worth noting that Biden's approval ratings on abortion have witnessed an improvement of eight points, rising from 39% in October to 47% presently. This topic was explicitly highlighted by Biden in his State of the Union address. It remains to be seen whether the electorate will prioritize abortion or focus more on issues such as the economy, inflation, and immigration, where Trump appears to be more favored.

The ABC News/Ipsos poll was conducted from March 8-9, 2024, and involved a random national sample of 536 U.S. adults. The margin of sampling error, including the design effect, is 4.5 points for the full sample. The partisan divisions identified were 25% Democrats, 25% Republicans, and 41% independents. For more details on the methodology, refer to the poll's topline results.

In summary, the ABC News/Ipsos poll reveals a share of Americans split on trust and approval ratings for President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. The outcomes reflect a nation divided as both leaders gear up for a potential 2024 presidential showdown.