Former President Donald Trump opened up with a 41-point lead over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the Sunshine State, the latest FAU/Mainstream Research poll found.
The gap has widened in Florida between the two Florida residents vying for the Republican nomination over the past few months. Trump now has 61 percent in the GOP race in Florida, amounting to a 41-point lead over DeSantis, who comes in a distant second with 20 percent support.
That 41-point gap is a positive trend in Trump’s direction. The former president’s support has grown by 11 points since July, but DeSantis’s has fallen ten points in that same time frame. In July, 20 points separated the two, but that spread has more than doubled as the primary race has continued on.
Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley comes in third place with nine percent support, reflecting an eight-point positive shift since July. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has one percent support, and Vivek Ramaswamy now has zero percent support, down from four percent in July.
The survey still shows Trump dominating DeSantis with majority support in a head-to-head matchup, leading 63 percent to the governor’s 30 percent. Again, that reflects a nine-point increase for Trump since July and a seven point loss for DeSantis over the same time frame.
Further the survey found 58 percent of black respondents, 74 percent of Hispanic respondents, and 57 percent of white respondents also choosing Trump as their candidate of choice in the GOP primary.
The survey was taken October 27 to November 11, 2023, among 946 Florida adults registered to vote. The margin of error is +/- 3.2 percent. It comes as Trump continues to wholly dominate the GOP primary field in survey after survey.
This is far from the only survey examining the race in Florida showing Trump trouncing DeSantis. A recent University of North Florida survey showed Trump leading with 60 percent support and DeSantis falling 39 points behind with 21 percent support in his home state.