Former President Donald Trump has increased his lead in the Republican primary race by double digits since June, while his rival, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, has continued to fall, the latest USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll revealed.
Despite months of legal woes and his decision to skip the first two Republican primary debates, Trump has only continued to strengthen his position as the leader of the GOP primary race. The survey found a majority, 58 percent, supporting Trump in the primary nationally, reflecting a ten-point increase since June.
Conversely, DeSantis trails by 46 points with 12 percent support, reflecting an 11-point drop since June, when he garnered 23 percent support. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley trails DeSantis closely, just one point behind with 11 percent support. That is a positive trend for the presidential hopeful, as it reflects a seven-point increase since June for Haley.
Every other candidate fell to less than three percent support.
The survey was taken October 17-20 among 1,000 registered voters and has a +/- 3.1 percent margin of error.
The negative news for DeSantis comes as he continues his full county blitz of Iowa in hopes of improving his standing in the early state, which votes on January 15. According to reports, DeSantis visited his 83rd county in the state over the weekend, leaving 16 to go:
However, Monday’s RealClearPolitics (RCP) average of polls previewed an uphill battle for the governor, who trails Trump in the Hawkeye State by an average of 33 percent.
RELATED: Exclusive — Trump on DeSantis: ‘He’s Crashing Badly,’ Will Be ‘Superseded’ in Second Place
Roughly two weeks ago, Trump took another shot at DeSantis publicly, declaring that the governor “has the Poll numbers of a wounded bird falling from the sky” and predicting that DeSantis will “SOON be out of money and dropping out of the race for President”:
“After having single handidly [sic] gotten him elected Governor, with no thanks or glory, it has been a beautiful thing to watch,” Trump added. “Good luck Ron!”