While it will take another week or two to see better how former President Donald Trump’s indictment in South Florida affects the Republican presidential contest, polls show he continues to draw most of the oxygen in the growing field.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis remains solidly in second.
A CBS News/YouGov poll released Sunday had Trump up 38 percentage points on DeSantis.
On Monday, Reuters/Ipsos had Trump up by 21 percentage points over DeSantis, and Issues & Insights /TIPP had Trump ahead of DeSantis by 36 percentage points.
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Trump was up 25 percentage points Tuesday in numbers from USA Today/Suffolk. YouGov, teaming this time with the Economist, released figures Wednesday showing Trump up 30 percentage points on DeSantis.
DeSantis has a less pronounced cushion over the rest of the field, where former Vice President Mike Pence placed third in each poll.
Writing for the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, research consultant Natalie Jackson argued Trump maintains three significant advantages over DeSantis and the other candidates: Trump is earning majorities in primary polling averages posted by Real Clear Politics and FiveThirtyEight; Republicans think Trump is their best bet against Biden; and Republicans would rather have a nominee they agree with than one who is electable.
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“A moderate Republican would have a smoother pathway to victory than Trump or DeSantis, particularly given Biden’s lackluster numbers, age, and relatively low-key persona,” Jackson wrote. “But moderate candidates face a very difficult primary environment where ideologues are more likely to vote for strong conservatives.”
DeSantis in recent campaign appearances and interviews, has pledged to appoint Supreme Court justices that will “do better” than Trump appointees Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett and that he would return Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg’s name to Fort Liberty in North Carolina.
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