Last updated on August 21st, 2023 at 12:54 am
A new poll found that while none of the other Republican presidential candidates can gain any ground, Trump’s favorability with Republicans has fallen by ten points.
Overall, 47% of Republicans and Republican-leaning registered voters say Trump is their first choice for the party’s nomination for president, down from 53% in a May CNN poll. Support for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis held steady at 26% in the latest poll, with former Vice President Mike Pence at 9%, former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley at 5%, South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott at 4%, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie at 3% and the remaining candidates at 1% or less.
In addition to the decline in support for Trump’s candidacy, his favorability rating among Republican-aligned voters has dipped, from 77% in May to 67% now, while the share who say they would not support him for the nomination under any circumstances has climbed, from 16% in May to 23% now. At the same time, there has been a similar increase in the share saying they would not back DeSantis under any circumstances (up 6 points to 21%), while the shares ruling out other top candidates have held roughly steady.
Trump still has a more than 20-point lead over Ron DeSantis who has not gained a single point on an opponent who is accused of 71 felonies. The softening of support for Trump has little to do with the indictment itself as in the same poll 54% of Republicans said that they aren’t concerned about it.
The Jack Smith indictment has triggered an epic round of Trump drama and has caused the Trump fatigue among Republican voters to grow. The drama and baggage that Trump comes with are one of the consistent complaints that a segment of Republican voters has voiced.
Since Trump can’t keep his mouth closed or stop creating drama, the greatest ally that his fellow Republican candidates might have is that with each new indictment and development, the former president will get more out of control and fatigue his supporters.
Jack Smith’s indictment isn’t helping, but Trump is being undone by Trump.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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