Michelle Obama the only Biden alternative who would beat Trump

The only prospective candidate who could beat Donald Trump in the presidential election is Michelle Obama, according to a new poll.

The former first lady, 60, would beat Trump, 78, by ten points, a Reuters and Ipsos survey showed, with no other possible candidates beating the former president.

It comes as Barack Obama has privately told allies that Mr Biden, 81, faces tougher odds of being re-elected after last week’s disastrous debate performance, during which the US president made a series of verbal blunders.

Support for Mrs Obama surged despite her previously ruling out running and endorsing Mr Biden’s re-election bid.

When voters were asked about hypothetical Democrat candidate matches, 50 per cent said they would vote for Mrs Obama – while just 39 per cent said Trump.

Favourites to take over from Mr Biden if he drops out, such as Kamala Harris or Gavin Newsom, polled significantly lower than Trump.

The poll also showed that one in three Democrats think the president should end his campaign in the wake of the CNN debate – but no prominent elected Democrat polled any better than Mr Biden. Three in five of the overall voters surveyed said Mr Biden should drop out, and just under half said Trump should.

Reports last week suggested Mrs Obama’s conspicuous absence from Mr Biden’s campaign was in part due to her disappointment over how the family had treated Kathleen Buhle, Hunter Biden’s ex wife.

Along with her concerns over the treatment of her close friend, Mrs Obama is said to be grudging in her support for the incumbent due to her dislike of partisan politics.

Mr Biden is battling concerns over his age and mental ability and failing to quell the panic engulfing his party in the fallout of his live showdown with Trump, which he acknowledged as poor on Tuesday.

After several days of reflection with his closest family and confidants at Camp David, the president blamed his performance on jet lag – after taking two overseas trips in June “going through 100 time zones”.

”[I] didn’t listen to my staff and came back and nearly fell asleep on stage,” he said. “That’s no excuse but it is an explanation.”

His campaign has further been damaged after a Democrat congressman from Texas became the party’s first sitting representative to publicly call for him to quit the presidential race.

Lloyd Doggett urged Mr Biden to take the “painful and difficult decision to withdraw” on Tuesday, after Nancy Pelosi said it was “legitimate” to question Mr Biden’s mental fitness.