Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) leads former President Donald Trump by nearly 31% head-to-head among Florida Republican primary voters.
The poll, conducted by the University of North Florida’s Public Opinion Research Lab among 550 Republican voters in the Sunshine State, shows DeSantis with a commanding lead over Trump in a survey including a wide field of candidates and in a head-to-head matchup.
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Voters were asked to choose among various candidates, with DeSantis earning 52%, Trump getting 27%, former Gov. Nikki Haley (R-SC) getting 4%, former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) getting 3%, former Vice President Mike Pence getting 2%, and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) got 1%. Govs. Kristi Noem (R-SD) and Chris Sununu (R-NH), along with Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), each got less than 1%.
In a head-to-head matchup between DeSantis and Trump, the Florida governor was up 59%-28%. Florida is the home state of both DeSantis and Trump, although Trump ran as a New York resident in 2016.
Of the contenders mentioned in the poll, only Trump and Haley have announced bids for president. Entrepreneur and author Vivek Ramaswamy is the only other declared major candidate in the GOP field but was not mentioned in the survey despite the poll being conducted from Feb. 25 through March 7, after he announced his bid.
DeSantis has been keeping pace with Trump in several primary states, including in California, where he has picked up support in recent polling data. A recent poll does show Trump with a lead in the early primary state of New Hampshire, but Sununu, who is governor of the state, said he believes DeSantis would beat Trump if the primary were held now.
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The Florida governor has not announced a 2024 bid but is reportedly eyeing an announcement in late May or early June after the state’s legislative session.
The Florida presidential primary is scheduled for March 19, 2024.
