Polling data from John Zogby Strategies offers an early snapshot of the 2028 presidential race, with Independent Senator Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump Jr. emerging as the current front-runners in their respective political parties.
During an appearance on Newsmax’s “Greg Kelly Reports,” pollster John Zogby discussed the newly released findings, shedding light on early voter sentiment heading into the next presidential cycle.
“Well, I did it, I guess, to quote a former president because I could,” Zogby remarked when asked about the motivation for conducting such an early survey. “But I did it because we have done that early on in nonpresidential years, looking ahead to the future. Usually, these are based on name recognition, you know, obviously, but in this instance, I think it told a story.”
According to the poll, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders leads among Democrats. Though he will be 86 years old in 2028 and is not expected to run, Zogby said Sanders represents a symbolic figure for progressives, sharing that space with New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
“That’s the left wing of the party. And the left wing of the party is in the ascendancy right now,” Zogby explained. “Who holds up the more establishment side of the party? That’s [former Transportation Secretary] Pete Buttigieg together with [Sen.] Cory Booker [D-N.J.] and [California Gov.] Gavin Newsom. What I’m impressed about is that there’s five people there in double digits, meaning this is wide open.”
Donald Trump Jr. leads among Republicans in the poll, and Zogby drew a historical parallel to a similar moment in political history.
“What’s really interesting is that Donald Trump Jr. is parallel to what we saw at this point in time in 1997,” he said. “George W. Bush, who was still relatively new governor of Texas, came in first in a field of Republicans that included, you know, some heavyweights.”
Zogby reflected on the 1997 polling results, noting that many voters at the time mistakenly thought George W. Bush was actually his father, President George H.W. Bush, and supported him out of a belief that the elder Bush had been unfairly treated in the 1992 election. He suggested that a similar phenomenon could be contributing to the numbers favoring Trump Jr.
When pressed on whether Trump Jr.’s polling success was simply a product of name familiarity, Zogby acknowledged that factor but said it doesn’t tell the whole story.
“Of course,” he said. “But behind the numbers, he does better than [Vice President JD] Vance. He gets 35% support among self-identified Republicans. Whereas those independents who said that they would vote in the Republican primary in their state favor Vance 2-to-1.”
{Matzav.com}