Poll: Trump Holds 20 Point Lead over DeSantis in Florida

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis INSET: Donald Trump
AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File/AP Photo/Phil Sears, File
Hannah Knudsen

Former President Donald Trump holds a 20-point lead over Gov. Ron DeSantis in Florida, polling from the Florida Atlantic University Mainstreet PolCom Lab found.

The survey found Florida Republicans maintaining a commitment to the former president, even on DeSantis’s home turf.

Half of GOP primary voters in the Sunshine State, 50 percent, support Trump in the crowded Republican primary field. DeSantis comes in a distant second, garnering 30 percent support in the Florida primary.

No other candidate comes remotely close. Anti-woke businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, for instance, comes in third place, 26 points behind DeSantis with four percent support. Sen. Tim Scott garnered just three percent support, followed by former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, and former Vice President Mike Pence, all of whom garnered two percent support each.

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley saw just one percent support.

The survey also found that one in five Republicans view supporting a candidate other than Trump as “disloyal” — a key critique of Trump when it comes to DeSantis.

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Dan Scavino Jr via Storyful

“Ron DeSanctimonious is getting absolutely ‘demolished’ for yesterday’s performance in New Hampshire,” Trump stated in a Truth Social post last week, asserting that “Patriots” are unhappy with disloyalty.

“No crowds, no enthusiasm, no interest. His Campaign is in total disarray. He’s hurting himself very badly for 2028. See, loyalty does matter with Patriots!” Trump added.

While Trump bests DeSantis in a head-to-head matchup as well — 54 percent to 37 percent — the survey noted that the gap between Trump and DeSantis has narrowed by seven points since April, prior to DeSantis jumping in the presidential race. The survey also showed both Trump and DeSantis besting President Biden in a matchup, by ten percent and 13 percent, respectively. And despite Trump’s 20-point lead, 54 percent Floridians still approve of DeSantis’s job performance in the state.

The overall poll was taken June 27 to July 1, 2023, among 933 Florida voters. It has a +/- 3.2 percent margin of error.

The results coincide with other state-level survey’s showing Trump as the dominant frontrunner in the GOP primary.A recent CWS Research survey showed Trump with a 32-point lead in Texas, and an American Greatness survey showed Trump with a 23-point lead over DeSantis in Iowa.

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