AFTER Joe Biden’s poor performance in Thursday’s debate against Donald Trump, rumors are buzzing that the president may be replaced as the Democratic nominee.

Biden, who visibly struggled to get through many of his own sentences during the debate, has left Democrats panicked and worried that he may not be able to beat Trump come November.

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President Joe Biden and Former President Donald Trump faced-off in a first-of-its-kind debate on ThursdayCredit: Getty

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Both candidates were criticized for their performances after the debateCredit: Getty
The debate featured a set of new, never-before-seen rules implemented into how the show is run.

These new rules included jumping straight into questions with no opening statements, no notes, no live audience, and the mics were turned off when it wasn’t their turn to speak.

Immediately after the 90-minute showdown, a poll by the debate’s host, CNN, found that 67% of viewers thought Trump won the debate – an overwhelming majority of people, especially for a more left-leaning network.

Another poll conducted by The U.S. Sun and Talker Research found that 53% of Americans believe that Donald Trump won the debate as well, with 21% believing that neither won.

This poll of 400 Democrats, 400 Republicans, and 200 Libertarian or Green Party voters, found that the top issues Americans care about, regardless of party, are the economy at 51%, immigration at 34%, and social security at 16%.

Both candidates are very close to each other in the polls with 40-41% split between the two, according to numbers by polling service, FiveThirtyEight.

But after Biden’s poor performance in the debate, only 66% percent of Americans are convinced he will be the Democratic party’s nominee.

But despite his struggles at Thursday’s debate, Biden held a rally on Friday in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he sounded much more coherent, fired-up, and addressed his performance flop and said he has no intention of stepping aside.

“I don’t walk as easy as I used to, I don’t speak as smoothly as I used to, and I don’t debate as well as I used to,” said the president.

“But I know how to tell the truth, I know right from wrong, and I know how to do this job,” he continued.

2024 POST Presidential debate

“I know how to get things done, and I know, like millions of Americans know, when you get knocked down, you get back up.”

Although Biden already said he has no intentions of stepping down to allow another candidate to run, 59% of those who don’t believe Biden will get the nomination anymore think that the Democratic party will replace him whether he wants to be removed or not.

Only 19% believe that Biden will step aside on his own will.

Another 43% of Americans believe that the President’s health troubles and concerns are standing in the way of winning his second term.

Of the possible names being floated as Biden’s potential replacement, the most popular seems to be California Governor Gavin Newsom.

Other possible replacements include Vice President Kamala Harris, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown, and Minnesota Congressman Dean Phillips.

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But that type of uncertainty doesn’t exist in Trump’s circles.

In fact, 82% of Americans believe that Trump has the nomination locked and are just waiting for the formal announcement.

What could come in the way, however, is Trump’s sentencing in New York on July 11, just four days before the Republican National Convention.

Of the 10% of Americans who don’t believe that Donald Trump will be the Republican nominee, most say it’s because of those legal troubles, believing a criminal sentence may prevent him from taking office.

But outside of his nomination, 57% of all Americans believe that Donald Trump’s sentencing will have an impact on the overall election.

On top of that, 38% of Americans say that Donald Trump’s sentencing will have a personal impact on how they decide to vote themselves.

The poll also found that many Americans were in favor of some of the new rules, including half believing that not having the studio audience present had an overall positive impact on their discussions.

With this in mind, a similar figure of 47% of Americans believe that the candidates should’ve been allowed to have pre-written notes with them – although, 40% of Republicans agreed with not allowing notes.

Another interesting fact to come out of the poll is that 44% of Americans surveyed believe that the debates are more for entertainment than they are to inform.

Assuming Biden remains the nominee, the next agreed-upon debate between the pair is set for September 10 on ABC.

Expert Analysis – Impact of the debate

Measuring the Impact of the debate with an expert:

Southern Illinois University Associate Professor of Political Science Ken Mulligan told The U.S. Sun the “election is effectively tied; it’s closer than any presidential election in decades.”

However, he believes that Trump now has the “momentum and advantage.”

He believes that although presidential debates usually don’t have a huge impact on election results, this one could affect voter turnout, as Biden and Trump both are historically unpopular.

And while Trump is still “the most unpredictable candidate ever,'” Mulligan thinks that Thursday night’s debate could feature fewer personal attacks than past bouts.

“Trump is now a convicted felon,” he added.

“But I don’t see that as necessarily being a huge problem for him, because most Republicans think these charges were politically motivated.”