Gov. Ron DeSantis‘ 2024 case is predicated on being able to beat Joe Biden, but one new poll – seemingly an outlier — pours cold water on that theory.
A survey of likely voters conducted Wednesday by Redfield and Wilton Strategies shows the Democratic incumbent 14 points ahead of the Florida Governor in a hypothetical General Election, 47% to 33%.
Lest readers believe that’s just a strong poll for Democrats, former President Donald Trump closes the gap to a dead heat, trailing Biden 44% to 43%.
One major issue for DeSantis in this poll is that Trump voters don’t trust him. The Florida Governor is taking just 62% of the MAGA crowd, with 14% saying they would vote for Biden over him. Biden commands 82% of those who voted for him in 2020, meanwhile, with DeSantis driving just 5% crossover conversion.
The Redfield and Wilton poll shows a different narrative than the Harvard/Harris survey released Friday, which suggests Biden and DeSantis are knotted at 42%. While it’s just one poll, it offers a counter to the narrative DeSantis is telling donors.
The message that only DeSantis can win in 2024 is one the Governor has embraced, as heard in a call to donors organized by his Never Back Down super PAC Thursday.
“You have basically three people at this point that are credible in this whole thing,” Mr. DeSantis told donors, as reported by The New York Times.
“Joe Biden, Trump and me. And I think of those three, two have a chance to get elected President — Biden and me, based on all the data in the swing states, which is not great for the former President and probably insurmountable because people aren’t going to change their view of him.”
DeSantis’ argument rests in battleground state polls that have shown him consistently outperforming the former President in head-to-head matchups against Biden. These include April and May surveys from Public Opinion Strategies in Arizona, Pennsylvania, Nevada and Wisconsin.
The post Shock poll puts Joe Biden 14 points ahead of Ron DeSantis in General Election appeared first on Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..