Seventy percent of Democrats said that age will not be an important factor in their vote, and 84 percent said gender wouldn't either. | Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images 2020 elections Poll: Biden, Bernie, Beto lead Democratic pack Pete Buttigieg, a mayor from Indiana, is tied for fifth place, tied with Sen. Elizabeth Warren and trailing Sen. Kamala Harris, who is in fourth.

A poll of the already crowded 2020 Democratic presidential race shows three white men — former Vice President Joe Biden, Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Texas Rep. Beto O'Rourke — leading the field.

In the Quinnipiac University poll, Biden is the top choice of 29 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents surveyed. Sanders is their second pick at 19 percent, and O’Rourke third at 12 percent.


“Hungry for a candidate to take on President Donald Trump, Democrats and Democratic leaners put the three B's, Biden, Bernie and Beto, at the top in a race where age, race and gender take a back seat to electability and shared views,” said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University poll.

California Sen. Kamala Harris ranks fourth, backed by 8 percent. South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren tied at 4 percent. Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota are at 2 percent; former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro and former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper are at 1 percent, according to the poll. Other candidates received less than 1 percent. And 14 percent of respondents were undecided, even after being read a list of candidates.

The poll ranked voters’ preferences for the key factors they’re looking for in a presidential candidate. Seventy percent of Democrats said age will not be an important factor in their vote, and 84 percent said gender will not be an important factor.

POLITICO Playbook newsletter Sign up today to receive the #1-rated newsletter in politics Email Sign Up By signing up you agree to receive email newsletters or alerts from POLITICO. You can unsubscribe at any time. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Asked to choose between a candidate that most shares their views on issues and a candidate that they think is most electable, Democratic voters split: 51 percent chose the candidate who shares their views, and 45 percent picked the most electable candidate. The most liberal voters in the poll are the ones most concerned with beating Trump in 2020: A 52 percent majority of Democrats who describe themselves as "very liberal" say they want the most electable candidate, while slight majorities of "somewhat liberal" or "moderate or conservative" Democratic voters prioritize a candidate with whom they agree on issues.

Regarding Trump, the poll showed a majority, 53 percent, of all voters said they definitely will not vote for Trump in the 2020 general election if he is the Republican candidate. Just 30 percent said they definitely will vote for Trump, while another 13 percent said they will consider casting a ballot for the incumbent president. “Definitely” voting for Trump are 77 percent of Republicans, 1 percent of Democrats and 21 percent of independent voters, the poll showed.

“The loyal base stays the course, but 53 percent of all American voters say they've had enough and will not vote for President Trump,” Malloy said.

The poll was conducted March 21–25, surveying 1,358 registered voters. The margin of error is 3.3 percentage points. The survey included 559 Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents, with a margin of error 5.1 percentage points.