New poll shows Republicans leaning more toward Trump than DeSantis for 2024

A new Quinnipiac poll released this week showed former president Donald Trump expanding his lead with voting Republicans over Florida Governor Ron DeSantis for the GOP’s 2024 POTUS nomination.

Past polling had shown the two being more competitive for the nomination, but the poll published on March 15 showed Trump gaining some momentum as the public awaits an official announcement of candidacy from DeSantis. The Sunshine State governor is widely expected to enter the race soon, but until he does, Trump’s biggest competition for the 2024 ticket is former UN ambassador Nikki Haley who announced her candidacy last month.

In the poll, respondents chose Trump over DeSantis 46 to 32 percent in a hypothetical matchup between the two for the GOP presidential nomination. A previous Quinnipiac poll in February showed Trump at 42 percent and DeSantis at 36, a significantly smaller gap than this week’s results.

A CNN poll published on March 14 showed Republican voters care more about voting for a candidate that aligns with their views on the major issues than one who can easily beat sitting President Joe Biden. 59 percent of respondents said they would rather have a nominee whose views match their own, and only 41 percent said they wanted a candidate with a strong chance to beat Biden. 

Nikki Haley received only 5 percent of the hypothetical vote in the most recent Quinnipiac poll, and Mike Pence received 3 percent.