Special Poll
A new Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows former President Donald Trump surging to his largest-ever lead over Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the race for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.
The poll, conducted after Trump was indicted on Thursday for his role in paying hush money to a porn star, found that Trump leads DeSantis by 26 percentage points among Republican primary voters, 57% to 31%.
Trump’s lead is even larger when pitted against a wider field of potential GOP challengers, with the former president attracting majority support (52%) from Republican primary voters. DeSantis, on the other hand, plummets to 21% support when faced with a wider field of candidates.
The poll is the latest sign of Trump’s continued strength among Republican voters, despite the indictment and other legal troubles. A recent CNN poll found that Trump remains the most popular figure in the Republican Party, with 70% of GOP voters saying they have a favorable view of him.
Trump’s lead over DeSantis is significant, given that DeSantis has been seen as a potential challenger to Trump in the 2024 Republican primary. DeSantis has raised a significant amount of money and has built a strong base of support among Republican voters in Florida.
However, the indictment appears to have hurt DeSantis’s chances of challenging Trump in 2024. The poll found that 62% of Republican primary voters believe that Trump is “honest and trustworthy,” up from 55% in December. Just 35% of Republican primary voters believe that DeSantis is honest and trustworthy.
The poll also found that Trump is seen as more likely to win the general election than DeSantis. 54% of Republican primary voters believe that Trump would be more likely to win the general election than DeSantis, while 36% believe that DeSantis would be more likely to win.
The poll is a sign of Trump’s continued strength among Republican voters and his potential to win the Republican nomination in 2024. DeSantis, on the other hand, faces an uphill battle in challenging Trump.