Democratic Primaries
In reply to the discussion: Poll: Biden leads Dem primary field by 30 points [View all]uawchild
(2,208 posts)First, this is not a prediction or criticism about the current Biden primary campaign. But since you asked if anyone this far ahead ever lost the nomination, I think the closest person would be Joe Biden himself in 1987.
"Biden was initially considered one of the potentially strongest candidates as campaigning began in 1987.[5] This was because of his moderate image, his speaking ability on the stump (rated second only to that of Jesse Jackson), his appeal to Baby Boomers, his high-profile position as chair of the Senate Judiciary committee, looming for the Robert Bork confirmation hearings, and his fundraising appealhis $1.7 million raised in the first quarter of 1987 was more than any other candidate.[6][7] By the end of April he had raised $2 million, using not just contributions from Delaware but also establishing a base of support among young professionals and Jewish voters in a number of urban- and suburban-oriented states.[8] He had no campaign debt, and Fortune magazine termed his "most impressive start" a "surprise".[8]"
While that's not exact poll numbers, I don't even know how much they polled in 1987, but the general grist was that Biden was the surprise early leader
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Biden_1988_presidential_campaign
Biden ended up withdrawing from that campaign with Michael Dukakis becoming the nominee.
primary today, I would vote for: Undecided