The king of Florida Republicans is not the former president ensconced at his Palm Beach estate, according to a new poll, but the occupant of the governor’s mansion in Tallahassee.
Not only is Gov. Ron DeSantis well ahead of his 2022 Democratic rivals as he seeks re-election, according to the University of North Florida survey released Thursday, but he also is beating former President Donald Trump in a hypothetical 2024 GOP presidential primary match up in Florida.
DeSantis is supported by 44% of Florida Republicans in the poll, while 41% back Trump.
Both DeSantis and Trump are speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference, which kicks off Thursday in Orlando.
Last year’s CPAC straw poll found that DeSantis was the top choice among the gathered activists for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination if Trump doesn’t run.
“With a lot of speculation about a possible presidential bid from DeSantis, we thought this would be an interesting hypothetical,” said Michael Binder, a political science professor at UNF and the faculty director of the school’s Public Opinion Research Lab. “It turned out to be pretty close with DeSantis up by three points against Trump. With both of them calling Florida home, this is a pivotal state and an outlier compared to national polling on this race.”
The survey of 685 registered voters has a margin of error of 3.7 percentage points. The pollsters do not say what the margin of error is for the GOP and Democratic primary questions, but it undoubtedly is higher.
DeSantis’ strength is evident in his high approval rating. The poll found that 58% of Florida voters approve of his job performance.
In head-to-head matchups with U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist and Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, two Democrats running for governor, DeSantis leads Crist by 21 percentage points and Fried by 23 points.
“We’re seeing a very wide margin for DeSantis against both top Democratic candidates— Crist and Fried,” Binder said. “A lot of Democratic voters still doesn’t know who they would vote for, so I would expect that lead to narrow between now and November.”
Crist leads the Democratic primary with 27% support, compared to 19% for Fried and 4% for state Sen. Annette Taddeo. But 38% of Democratic voters are undecided.
“Crist has eight points on Fried in the governor’s primary, but we still have 38% of registered Democrats in this survey who are undecided,” Binder said. “These folks likely won’t make up their minds for a while, so this will be a pretty muddled picture until later in the summer.”
The poll also found Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio leading his Democratic challenger, U.S. Rep. Val Demings. Rubio is at 46% support in the survey, compared to 34% for Demings and 17% who are undecided.
President Joe Biden’s approval rating is dismal in the survey. Just 36% of Florida voters approve of his job performance, compared to 57% who disapprove.
The poll also found that 58% of Florida voters believe Biden definitely or probably won the 2020 election while 34% believe Trump won, a sign of how deeply Trump’s unfounded claims of voter fraud have been accepted.
The only candidates for the POTUS in the past three elections have been McCain, Romney and Trump versus Obama, Clinton, and Biden. None have the character, integrity, and leadership abilities of those such as Washington, Adams, Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Coolidge, Truman, Eisenhower, and Reagan. Let that soak in, because that is our fault, and will be our fate.
02/26/2022
I voted for former President Trump against Clinton and Biden. And I will vote for whoever runs against today’s Leftist Socialist Democrats. They believe not only that all is fair in love and war, but whatever Democrats say and do. They lie, cheat, and steal continually. Their core value is that the end justifies the means. They are EVIL; LET ME REPEAT, EVIL.
However, former President Trump should NOT be our candidate for the next POTUS. He had many good programs and policies, but his time wasted on McCain put Biden in office and the Democrats in power in the House and Senate.
His criticism of McCain for being a POW in North Vietnam cost us the open Senate seat in Arizona and therefore the Democrats now control the Senate. Ten of my 1964 USAF Academy classmates (pilots) endured that North Vietnam POW torture and hell. Several others died in combat. Former President Trump never once put his life on the line in war.
And his recent negative comments about Colin Powell are another example of how to lose votes from those who served with and respect his service to our country.
Trump needs to read about the success of Reagan and Coolidge who focused on programs and never wasted time belittling their political opponents.
And why does former President Trump criticize his most loyal friends and staff who may disagree with him? He is not a god and all knowing, and his biggest faults are his lack of humility (PRIDE), big ego, failure to listen to others, attacks on people because they aren’t physically beautiful, and his wasted efforts to belittle his political opponents.
We will need former President Trump’s financial help and the support of those who voted for him in the past, and only by selecting persons like DeSantis, Haley, Tim Scott, Pence, John Kennedy, Rick Scott, and Mike Pompeo will our next POTUS and Vice POTUS be experienced and wise conservatives that can save our nation.
Regarding former President Trump, I admire many of his attributes, but he has too many negative political deficiencies.
Thanks from John C. Sowers
Retired Military
Hot Spring Village, AR
501-226-3039
02/26/2022
Mr. Trump,
I am retired military, with over 30 years’ service. At minimum, two things you have said more than anger me.
First, I graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1964 and many of my classmates died in combat or were captured as POWs. You said that those captured were losers when you so criticized McCain. I know you have never served in the military and in a combat zone. So, as CS Lewis stated in his book Mere Christianity, you should keep your mouth shut about war, as you know nothing about it.
Second, you claim to be a Christian and have never had to ask for forgiveness. You are not Jesus, so you have sinned in mind and deed (rebelled against God and his teachings and commandments) so please stop your spiritual charade. You would do well to talk to Mr. Pence who seems to have his life priorities straight.
I could go on about your many past negative statements, but your advisors and family should have enough courage to tell you to stop your arrogant, vain, and pompous comments and behavior. We need leadership and that includes controlling your mouth.
John Sowers
Hot Springs Village, AR
501-226-3039
It would be a great combination in 2024 to see Trump run as president with DeSantis as his running VP, that would set up DeSantis as running for president the next four years
Yes, a real cast of tyrannts. Luckily neither wants to be a shadow in the other’s spotlight.