New polling from Florida Atlantic University (FAU) suggests that Sunshine State Republicans are souring on Ron DeSantis’ presidential bid.
The survey shows the Florida Governor plumbing new depths in the GOP Primary race, with just 20% support — 41 points behind former President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has taken hold of third place, garnering 9% support.
DeSantis is most competitive with Trump among voters under the age of 35, with 35% support against 41% for the former President.
The Governor’s strongest region is Duval County and other parts of Northeast Florida, where Trump only leads him 44% to 37%. Conversely, he is weakest in the Miami area, with 10% support, and in Southwest Florida, where 6% of respondents back him, putting him behind Haley in that part of the state.
In a head-to-head against Trump, the former President dominates, 63% to 30%. DeSantis leads 48% to 43% in the Palm Beach area, and is in a dead heat with Trump in Northeast Florida in that hypothetical scenario.
The Governor’s image is suffering meanwhile, with just 50% of voters approving of his job performance, against 49% disapproval. He still enjoys 90% approval with Republicans, but the survey suggests his landslide victory in 2022 is just a memory now.
The FAU poll is the second survey to show a diminished DeSantis.
The University of North Florida Public Opinion Research Lab in a November poll showed Trump had 60% support while DeSantis had just 21% backing.
Florida’s March 19 Primary is a winner-take-all contest, in which 125 delegates to the Republican National Convention will be allocated.
As of right now, that cache appears to be Trump’s to lose.
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