Donald Trump has a roughly 20-point lead over his closest Republican rival in a poll of likely Georgia GOP voters, a sign of the former president’s enduring popularity in a state where he suffered some of his most humbling electoral defeats.
Trump led the field with 51%, followed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is expected to enter the race within months, at 30%. Every other Republican contender lagged in the single digits. Only 7% of respondents were undecided.
Trump is the clear favorite among almost all blocs of Republican voters at this early stage in his comeback bid, scoring some of the heftiest advantages among the party’s most conservative voters, and those who are older, poorer and have lower levels of education.
His strong showing comes after his indictment in New York on charges of falsifying business records. Nearly 90% of Georgia Republicans say the criminal charges should not disqualify him from seeking office again, compared with 7% who say they should. Trump is also at the center of an ongoing probe in Fulton County that could result in criminal charges.
DeSantis was competitive only among smaller slices of voters, including younger Republicans and those with annual incomes that topped $100,000. Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley nabbed just 4% support. Ex-Vice President Mike Pence was at 2%.
In a hypothetical head-to-head matchup, DeSantis fared slightly better. He trailed Trump 51% to 41%, with about 8% of respondents undecided. The Florida governor fared best among Republicans with college or graduate degrees.
Credit: Miguel Martinez
Credit: Miguel Martinez
Still, the poll pointed to misgivings toward Trump that could dog his comeback bid. While 85% of Republican voters say they’ll back Trump if he’s the nominee, 6% say they’ll cast their ballot for a Democrat, 3% will side with a third-party candidate and 2% will skip the vote altogether.
The poll was conducted April 2-7 and 10-13 by the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs, and it involved 983 likely Republican primary voters. The margin of error is 3.1 percentage points.
While the school conducts polls for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the news organization did not commission this survey.
The poll’s results showed Trump’s continued sway over Georgia Republican voters despite major setbacks in the state — and a desire by influential activists and elected officials to back an alternative without the political and legal baggage that Trump carries.
Trump’s narrow 2020 defeat to Joe Biden made him the first Republican nominee to lose Georgia since 1992. His campaign to oust Gov. Brian Kemp, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and other Republican incumbents in last year’s elections ended in humiliating defeats for Trump-backed challengers.
Herschel Walker, recruited by Trump to run for the U.S. Senate last year, lost after a disastrous campaign. And Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is considering whether to seek criminal charges against Trump over his attempt to overturn his Georgia loss.
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
Kemp, whose approval ratings notched a new high after winning a second term in 2022, was not included in the poll. He has ruled out a 2024 run for president, though he’s sought other ways to influence the White House race.
The poll found that DeSantis is the preferred second choice for a plurality of likely Georgia GOP voters, with 37% saying they’d back him. About 17% of respondents viewed Trump as their second choice, while 10% picked Haley as their backup, and 7% chose Pence.
Both DeSantis and Trump scored highly with Georgia Republicans, each notching favorability ratings among 80%. Trump had slightly higher negative ratings than DeSantis, with 18% of Republicans giving him an unfavorable review compared with 12% for the Florida governor.
About 60% of likely GOP voters say they have favorable opinions of Haley and Pence, while U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, who entered the race this week, has a 45% positive rating. An additional 43% of Georgia GOP voters say they don’t know enough about the South Carolina lawmaker to form an opinion.
Republican voters were more divided over their top priorities for their presidential nominee. About one-third say it’s most important to approve a candidate who can beat Biden in 2024, while 46% say they want someone who shares their stances on major issues. Roughly 20% of GOP voters value both equally.
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