Former President Donald Trump is holding a double-digit lead in a hypothetical 2024 Republican primary race, the most recent Harvard CAPS/Harris Poll found.
The survey asked Republican voters, “If the Republican presidential primary for the 2024 election was held today, who would you vote for?”
The respondents were given a handful of specific choices — from Trump to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL).
Trump, however, took the lead with 48 percent support. DeSantis came in a distant second — 23 points behind, with 25 percent support.
No other candidate came close. Former Vice President Mike Pence came in third place with six percent support, followed by former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley with four percent support, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo with two percent, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) with two percent, Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) with one percent, and Sen. Rubio with one percent support as well.
Eight percent remained unsure, and three percent said “someone else.”
DeSantis has a commanding lead when the same question was asked absent Trump, leading the field with 48 percent support. Pence, in that lineup, comes in a distant second with 15 percent support. No other candidate sees double-digit support, although 12 percent said they remain unsure.
Incumbent Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis arrives to speak to supporters at an election night party after winning his race for reelection in Tampa, Fla., Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022 (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell).
The survey described the head-to-head matchup between Trump and DeSantis as an “open fight.” Among GOP voters, Trump leads DeSantis in a direct matchup by ten points: 55 percent to 45 percent. However, when independent voters are added to the mix, DeSantis leads Trump head-to-head 52 percent to 48 percent.
Notably. both Trump and DeSantis are rated as the two most favorable public figures of the group listed on the survey, seeing 46 percent and 45 percent favorability, respectively.
The survey was taken December 14-16, 2022, among 1,851 registered voters.
DeSantis has yet to say if he intends to run in 2024 despite dismissing the speculation in the past as purely manufactured rumors.
Trump, however, has not taken kindly to DeSantis’s failure to quash the rumors, deeming him “Ron DeSanctimonious” last month.
“I don’t know if he is running. I think if he runs, he could hurt himself very badly. I really believe he could hurt himself badly,” Trump said of the prospect of DeSantis running in 2024.
“I think he would be making a mistake. I think the base would not like it. I don’t think it would be good for the party,” Trump, who formally announced his 2024 bid post-midterms, added.
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