(VitalNews.org) – While popular in Florida, Republican Governor Ron DeSantis has a poor showing in broader public opinion polls, raising the question of whether he can compete with Donald Trump in the upcoming presidential election.
After months of speculation, DeSantis finally announced his presidential bid on May 24th after a cross-country book tour that started in the politically important state of Iowa.
According to a new poll from the online company Civiqs, 55 percent of poll takers disapprove of DeSantis while only 36 give him a thumbs-up. The numbers get more interesting when broken down by the age and demographic characteristics of poll-takers. Sixty-three percent of those ages 18-34 disapprove of the Republican governor, 62 percent of women see him unfavorably, 68 percent of Hispanics, and 85 percent of black respondents gave him a negative rating.
Just a few months ago, political observers speculated that DeSantis might be the best choice for the GOP in the 2024 race, considering the numerous scandals in which Donald Trump has become embroiled. For Trump, the latest setback was losing a civil case brought by magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll. Carroll claimed Trump raped her in a department store dressing room in the 1990s; Trump denies even knowing Caroll.
But though a jury did not find Trump liable for rape, it did find that he sexually assaulted Carroll and later defamed her. The jury ordered Trump to pay $5 million in damages to Carroll. According to her attorneys, she will be asking for even more.
But in just a few months, the shine seems to have faded from the DeSantis campaign. His approval rating has dropped by 19 points while Trump’s popularity continues unchanged.
One potential bright spot for DeSantis may be that in the Civiqs poll, Trump now shows a 57 percent disapproval rating compared to DeSantis’ 55 percent. But such small numbers may be statistical artifacts that do not indicate much real difference in public sentiment.
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