Trump up 13 points in matchup with Ron DeSantis: poll

Former President Donald Trump has pulled ahead of his closest expected Republican challenger, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, by 13 percentage points in a new survey of a hypothetical head-to-head primary matchup.

The Wall Street Journal poll of likely GOP primary voters released Friday found 51% supported the 76-year-old Trump, while 38% backed DeSantis, 44.

The remaining 11% said they were undecided.

The result represents a near-complete reversal from December, when the Journal poll showed DeSantis with 52% GOP support and Trump with 38%.

When confronted with a potential 12-person primary field, 48% of Republican voters still back Trump — double DeSantis’ 24% support. No other potential contender cracked double figures, with former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley getting 5% support and Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) at 3%.

Longshot candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, an entrepreneur who has never held public office, received 2% support, while a slew of declared and potential candidates — including former Vice President Mike Pence, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie — all polled at 1% or less.

“If you are with Trump, you are with him,” Democratic pollster Molly Murphy, who helped conduct the survey, told the Journal. “You can throw 10 other candidates in the field; you can take all of the candidates out.”

Friday’s poll does include some encouraging numbers for DeSantis, who is expected to enter the 2024 race sometime next month.

For example, his 84% favorability with likely Republican primary voters is higher than Trump’s 78% favorability.

DeSantis also beats President Biden 48% to 45% among registered voters in a head-to-head general election matchup. Trump, on the other hand, trails Biden by the same numbers.

A plurality of likely Republican primary voters (41%) also say the Florida governor has the best chance of unseating Biden in November 2024.

Another 31% say Trump has the best chance and 13% say both men have an equal chance of winning the White House.

Biden is widely expected to announce his re-election campaign next week, as his presidential job approval rating remains underwater.

The Journal poll shows Biden’s job approval rating at 42%, with 56% disapproving of his work as president — and 48% strongly disapproving.

Ironically, the survey also found 48% approved of the job Trump did as the 45th president, while 51% disapproved.

The poll comes after a grand jury indictment in New York served as a shot in the arm for the Trump campaign, which raked in millions of dollars in donations after reports leaked that he would become the first former president charged with a crime.

The ex-commander-in-chief has stepped up his attacks against DeSantis for waging legal battles against the Walt Disney Co. — and for voting as a member of Congress on non-binding resolutions that supported cuts to Social Security and Medicare.

In a recent ad, a Trump PAC mocked DeSantis for sticking his “dirty fingers” into the senior benefits programs.

DeSantis, who is also breaking some fundraising records for his party ahead of a presumptive run, won re-election in November by a 19-point margin.

The Florida governor has elevated conservative issues in what are expected to be his final months in Tallahassee, signing into law a six-week abortion ban last week and another law this month allowing concealed carry of a handgun without a permit.

The Journal poll shows 53% of voters oppose the abortion law, and 65% oppose the permitless handgun carry law.

The poll surveyed 1,500 registered voters April 11 to 17 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.

Among its sample of 600 likely Republican primary voters, the poll’s margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points.