Former President Donald Trump is leading Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) in the Sunshine State, a recent National Research Inc. survey, commissioned by American Greatness, found.
While recent surveys show Trump with a sizable lead in the hypothetical 2024 Republican primary race nationally, he is also taking the lead in several key states.
The latest National Research Inc. survey, conducted among 500 likely GOP primary voters in Florida, found the former president leading his closest potential challenger by eight percent, or 42 percent to 34 percent, in Florida.
No other potential challenger comes remotely close, as former Vice President Mike Pence, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, and anti-woke businessman Vivek Ramaswamy all saw two percent support. Everyone else listed — including Sen. Tim Scott, who is expected to make a presidential announcement May 22 — saw one percent support or less.
Another 16 percent indicated that they are unsure or refused to answer.
Voters who view both Trump and DeSantis favorably also side with Trump by a 19-point margin — 53 percent to the governor’s 34 percent support.
Republican primary voters also view Trump as better equipped to improve the economy, 46 percent to DeSantis’s 18 percent — a 28 percent gap on that issue alone.
Further, Republicans in Florida tend to believe Trump is the strongest one to “oppose far left progressives,” 33 percent to DeSantis’s 27 percent. However, both are in a virtual dead heat when asked which individual “cares about needs and concerns of people like me,” as Trump garnered 26 percent and DeSantis saw 25 percent.
The survey was taken May 8-9, 2023, and has a +/- 4.38 percent margin of error.
The survey follows a Victory Insights survey released in April, which similarly found Trump leading DeSantis in the Sunshine State by roughly eight percent:
Several Florida lawmakers have endorsed Trump’s presidential bid, including Reps. Byron Donalds (R-FL), Cory Mills (R-FL), Greg Steube (R-FL), and Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL). Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) has expressed support for the former president as well.
According to previous reports, DeSantis would not consider making a presidential announcement until after Florida’s legislative session, which ended last week.
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