A.G. Gancarski
The Republican presidential race continues to shrink even before the first nominating contests. And it appears the former President Donald Trump is getting the biggest bump from the winnowing of the field.
A new Monmouth University national poll of 540 GOP and GOP leaning voters, conducted from Nov. 30 to Dec. 4, 2023, shows that no matter how questions are framed, a majority of Republicans want the former President to win the nomination for the third time.
“In an open-ended question asking Republican voters whom they would like to see as the GOP nominee for president, 53% name Trump. This top-of-mind preference has steadily climbed from a year ago when it stood at just 26%,” the poll memo stated.
“In a subsequent question listing seven candidates in the race at the time the poll was taken, Trump’s support stands at 58%. Far back in the pack are Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (18%), former U.N. Ambassador and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (12%), entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy (4%), and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (2%).”
Trump’s 58% is up 4 percentage points from July, while DeSantis fell from 22% in the same month. While Haley has improved by 9 points since July, that doesn’t seem to translate into pollster confidence that she has enough runway to supplant the former President.
“We can parse these numbers until the cows come home, but the results don’t look good for any candidate not named Trump. Certainly, there is always an outside chance of an upset in an early primary shaking things up, but most Republicans seem to anticipate an inevitable outcome,” said Patrick Murray, Director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute.
Murray also suggests that the problem for DeSantis, Haley, and the others is that GOP voters ultimately didn’t want an open Primary like the party had in 2016.
“Most Trump voters feel he should have been given the deference of an incumbent. Among Republicans who want an alternative, though, there isn’t really a clear sense that a viable contender has emerged who they can rally around.”
8 comments
PeterH
December 6, 2023 at 12:02 pm
As an independent voter, if Trump or DeSantis win the Republican Primary …. I will gladly vote for Joe Biden who has surrounded himself with the most highly educated, intelligent and qualified advisers in any presidential administration.
rick whitaker
December 6, 2023 at 5:53 pm
peterH, good comment, i was relieved to hear you were calling yourself an independent instead of a libertarian. i look at it a little different even though either party doesn’t fit me. i am far to the left of the democrat party personally, but because i’m a realist, i have another way of dealing with the fact that i don’t have a viable party capable of getting elected. my advice to those who don’t like either party is this. pick the one party that fits you the best, and then start trying to make it better. obviosly i have chosen the dem party.
My Take
December 6, 2023 at 12:41 pm
UnAmericans, like other scum, must clot or coaggulate rather than disperse.
Sonja Fitch
December 6, 2023 at 1:05 pm
Yes but, the trump is to afraid to debate! Why is trump afraid? Cause these folks are better informed and can put the boy Trump in his place! Place? Out of the race! No one is above the law. Lol. Lol
Florida Man
December 6, 2023 at 1:08 pm
Watch how the media protects “Dementia” Joe from any meaningful debates. He simply can’t function without cheat sheets, cue cards, teleprompters, etc. The poor guy can’t even naviagate his way off the stage once he finishes reading his cheat sheets.
TJC
December 6, 2023 at 4:51 pm
He beat Trump’s ass when they debated in 2020, then he won the election.
Your moniker, “Florida Man,” is perfect for you, by the way.
rick whitaker
December 6, 2023 at 1:26 pm
florida man, we have been watching 2 different medias, you fox, me almost everything else. your post sounds like someone like trump or desantis would say. PLEASE stay in florida florida man, i don’t ever go there. i left in 1968 and have never wanted to go back, too redneck for me.
Dont Say FLA
December 8, 2023 at 2:16 pm
All the hateful GOP types love their hater in chief, but will they actually show up to vote for him? That is a helluva question. I doubt they really will show up. WHen it comes time to put up or shut up, they’ll stay home. They all lover him, but they also all know that Trump is not worth the bother of going and voting for him. They’re just going sit this one out, i predict.
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