Former President Donald Trump’s lead over his potential 2024 contenders has expanded since the formal announcement of his indictment at the hands of a New York grand jury and leftist district attorney Alvin Bragg, the latest Morning Consult survey found.
The survey, updated Monday — the day Trump departed from Mar-a-Lago to New York — found the former president’s lead expanding over his potential challengers.
According to the survey, Trump continues to garner majority support, as 55 percent of Republicans support him in the hypothetical 2024 presidential primary. That is three points higher than the 52 percent support he saw one week ago, on March 27.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis now falls 29 points behind with 26 percent support — the same percentage he saw last week. Former Vice President Mike Pence comes in third place with seven percent support, down from the eight percent he saw last week. Former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley followed with four percent support down from five percent, and former Rep. Liz Cheney garnered two percent, reflecting a one-point drop from the three percent support she saw last week as well. No other potential candidate listed saw greater than one percent support:
The key takeaway from Morning Consult notes that Trump’s support has only strengthened following the indictment:
Trump’s Support Strengthens After Indictment: Former President Donald Trump is backed by 55% of potential Republican primary voters, up 3 percentage points from last Wednesday, the day before news broke that a Manhattan grand jury voted to indict him on fraud charges over his alleged role in paying hush money to adult film star Stormy Daniels. It gives him a 29-percentage-point lead over his closest polling potential rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — marking his second-best advantage since tracking began in December.
Currently, 47 percent of Trump supports still choose DeSantis as their second choice candidate, while 41 percent of DeSantis voters choose Trump of their second choice candidate.
The survey, taken March 31 to April 2, 2023, among 3,488 potential GOP primary voters, has a +/- 2 percent margin of error. It stands as the latest poll showing that the indictment could actually bode quite well for the former president in 2024.
Currently, 47 percent of Trump supports still choose DeSantis as their second choice candidate, while 41 percent of DeSantis voters choose Trump of their second choice candidate.
A recent YouGov/Yahoo found 51 percent agreeing that the indictment will not negatively affect Trump.
As Breitbart News reported:
When asked how the indictment will affect Trump as a 2024 presidential candidate, most, 51 percent, believe it will not negatively affect him. Of those, 27 percent said it makes no difference, while nearly a quarter, 24 percent, believe it will make him stronger.
Further, half agree that a prosecutor from one party — in this case, leftist prosecutor Alvin Bragg — indicting a presidential candidate from another party is “unfair.”
A recent Insider Advantage survey also found 55 percent of Republican voters indicating the indictment is making them more supportive of the former president.
“HEADING TO NEW YORK. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!” Trump exclaimed Monday:
THE STATE OF THIS COUNTRY: Donald Trump Leaves Mar-a-Lago to Fly to NYC for Arraignment
Video Source: C-SPAN WATCH: “Trump Force One” Lands in NYC for His Arraignment
Video Source: Angie Wong via Storyful
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