Ron DeSantis falls to 6% in New York, 58 points behind Donald Trump

The Empire State remains the dominion of Donald Trump, according to the latest polling of the state’s Republicans.

The newest survey of New York GOP Presidential Primary voters from Siena College shows 64% of voters want the former President as next year’s nominee.

Just 27% want “someone else,” meanwhile, and those voters are split. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has 24% of that group, a number which represents 6.48% support overall.

This represents attrition of nearly half the support DeSantis had in the previous Siena poll, which showed him at a comparatively more robust 11%. In the poll before that, the Governor had 9% support, meanwhile.

There isn’t much indication that those anti-Trumpers are coalescing around DeSantis either. “Don’t know” leads all options, with 30%. Vivek Ramaswamy has 17% of those voters who want an alternative to the former President in New York’s April 2 Primary.

DeSantis has attempted to tailor the socially conservative brand he uses as Governor of Florida for the New York market, listing the state as an example of why he says he doesn’t back a nationwide six-week abortion ban like the Legislature passed this year.

“I think that in states where you’ve had the ability to make improvements and to add pro-life protections, I applaud states that have done that, but we have a big, diverse country. I acknowledge that and I’m not suggesting that somehow New York is necessarily going to follow Iowa’s lead on that. I think you’re going to see differences,” DeSantis said in July on “Fox & Friends.”

Despite the abortion equivocation, the Governor has used New York as a punching bag when courting support elsewhere.

The Governor used NYC drag queens as a rhetorical target on the campaign trail this summer, for example.

“You know, there was a thing, I think it was in New York City. Some of you may have seen it,” DeSantis said. “It was some type of demonstration and they had like these drag queens saying, the chant was, ‘We’re coming for your children.’”

“Let me tell you this, you know, like people, adults, you know, they do. It’s a free country, right? I mean, like, I kind of just, like, you know, mind my own business. But you start coming for our kids, we’ve got problems. And we are going to stand up for our kids,” he continued.

DeSantis has made trips to the New York City metropolitan area this year, though they don’t seem to have helped.

At a book tour stop, protesters and critics supportive of Trump greeted DeSantis in New York.

“Wait until ’28, Ron; wait until ’28,” one jeered.

DeSantis also addressed police officers at an outer borough catering hall in Staten Island. The former President lambasted DeSantis for poor attendance at an event later that day.

Meanwhile, former New York gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin has endorsed Trump, despite DeSantis campaigning with him last year.

“The GOP is filled with amazing talent to save our country from the failed policies of the (Joe) Biden Admin. Our nominee in 2024 will be the 45th & 47th POTUS, Donald Trump. Our economy will be stronger, our streets will be safer, & our lives will be freer,” Zeldin tweeted. “He has my full support!”