Trump trails DeSantis in every metric except who would win GOP primary: Poll
Jack Birle
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Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) has higher marks than former President Donald Trump in nearly all questions of a new poll, except for who would win in a GOP primary contest.
A new Quinnipiac University poll shows Trump leading the Florida governor 52%-42% in a head-to-head race and by 14% in a wide field of GOP candidates.
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In a wide field of Republican candidates, Trump gets 47%, DeSantis gets 33%, former Vice President Mike Pence gets 5%, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley gets 4%, and no other candidate gets more than 2%.
“Is the raucous Trump political resurrection adrift? Not in the least. DeSantis appears to be treading water and the long list of ‘wannabes’ and ‘could bes’ are barely staying afloat,” Tim Malloy, Quinnipiac University polling analyst, said in a statement.
Despite trailing Trump in the Republican primary, DeSantis fares better than the former president against President Joe Biden. DeSantis beats Biden head to head 48%-46%, while Trump trails Biden in a general election 46%-48%.
Of the top three 2024 contenders across both parties, DeSantis is the only one with a plurality of adults, 41%-40%, saying he is honest. A majority of adults believe both Biden, 54%-41%, and Trump, 65%-29%, are not honest.
Biden, Trump, and DeSantis all have favorability ratings that are underwater. Biden has the best favorable rating of the three, with 37% viewing him favorably and 56% viewing him unfavorably. DeSantis has the same favorable rating as Trump, 36%, but the Florida governor has a lower unfavorable rating, 39%, than the former president, 58%.
A majority of adults (57%) also believe that if Trump is indicted in any of the various investigations into him that he should be disqualified from office, compared to 38% who do not believe it should disqualify him.
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A Manhattan grand jury is investigating Trump’s alleged reimbursement of a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016, a grand jury in Georgia is investigating the former president for his alleged interference in the 2020 election in the Peach State, while special counsel Jack Smith is investigating Trump for his alleged mishandling of classified documents and involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
DeSantis has not confirmed a White House run but is reportedly set to announce a presidential bid in May or June after the Sunshine State’s legislative session has concluded.