Ron DeSantis nears ‘all-time low’ in Morning Consult poll

The latest Morning Consult survey is bad news for Ron DeSantis.

The Florida Governor faces a 40-point deficit against former President Donald Trump in the survey conducted after the former President’s second indictment, a federal rap regarding the retention of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago.

“Nearly three in five potential Republican Primary (59%) voters back Trump for the party’s 2024 presidential nomination, up from 55% last week before news of his indictment on charges related to his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House. Almost one in five (19%) support DeSantis, nearing an all-time low since tracking began in December,” a polling memo accompanying the results asserts.

DeSantis’ previous low was 18% in this survey back in May. The survey has a +/- 2-percentage-point margin of error, which suggests a statistical tie between then and now.

DeSantis still has a double-digit lead over the rest of the field, with the closest competition being former Vice President Mike Pence, the choice of 8% of those surveyed. No one else is even at 5% among the 3,419 potential Republican Primary voters polled between June 9 and June 11.

DeSantis is still the top second choice for Trump voters, with 43% saying they would back the Florida Governor if the former President somehow exited the 2024 race. Pence is the choice of 16% in that unlikely scenario, with author Vivek Ramaswamy taking 8%.

If DeSantis dropped out, 43% of his voters would go to Trump in this poll, with 18% going to Pence, 10% going to U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, and 9% each to Ramaswamy and Nikki Haley, the former United Nations envoy and Governor of South Carolina.

“Far more of Trump’s supporters (15%) than DeSantis’ (4%) are uncertain about where their loyalties would fall if their first choice weren’t in the race,” the polling memo contends.

The Morning Consult survey is more pessimistic about DeSantis than the national average from Race to the White House. Trump leads overall there, 54% to 23%, with Pence’s 5% good for a distant third place.

The site’s delegate tracker is going Trump’s way. If the field stays crowded, the former President is forecast to have 1,856 delegates, compared to 544 for DeSantis. If the field narrows, Trump is predicted to have a 1,971-484 lead.