Despite The Possible Indictment, Donald Trump Is Still Holding Big Lead Over Ron DeSantis In 2024 Republican Race

Credit: The Hill

Even though there is a possible indictment looming over former President Donald Trump, he still holds a double-digit lead over Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in a hypothetical 2024 Republican presidential nomination race. he also remains competitive with President Biden in a potential general election rematch, according to a new poll.

The poll is from Quinnipiac University and was released on Wednesday. The poll indicates that most Americans say Trump should be disqualified from running for the White House again in criminal charges filed against him in the ongoing local and federal investigations.

Fox News shared: 

The survey is the latest to indicate that Trump — who in November launched his third presidential campaign — remains in the early stages of the 2024 cycle and the clear front-runner in the race for his party’s nomination. Trump stands at 47% support among Republicans and GOP-leaning independents, who were given a list of 15 actual or potential presidential candidates from which to choose. 

DeSantis, who remains on the 2024 sidelines but is widely expected to enter the race later this year, is second, with 33% support. Former Vice President Mike Pence, who is also likely to run, received 5% support, with the former ambassador and former two-term South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who launched her campaign last month, at 4%. No one else tops 2% in the survey, which was little changed from a Quinnipiac University poll conducted several weeks prior.

Biden just beats out Trump 48%-46% in a hypothetical 2024 general election matchup, according to the survey. The poll shows DeSantis ahead of Biden by a thin margin, 48%-46%.

Trump is facing a potential indictment from the Manhattan District Attorney in New York City for his alleged role in hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016. This was allegedly done to keep her quiet about claims she had sexual encounters years earlier with former President Trump.

Trump denies sleeping with Daniels and denies falsifying business records to keep the payment hidden.

The Department of Justice is investigating Trump over the alleged removal of classified government documents from the White House. They were taken to Trump’s Mar-A-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida after he left office.

The poll also says:

By a 57%-38% margin, the poll indicates Americans say Trump should be disqualified from running for president again if charges are filed in the investigations. However, there is a wide partisan divide, with 88% of Democrats and 55% of independents saying Trump should be disqualified, while three-quarters of Republican respondents said criminal charges should not prevent Trump from seeking another term in the White House.

More than six in 10 questioned said the Manhattan District Attorney’s case was mainly motivated by politics.

The Quinnipiac University poll was conducted from March 23-27, with 1,788 U.S. adults nationwide surveyed. The poll’s overall sampling error is plus or minus 2.3 percentage points, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points for questions asked only of Republican and GOP-leaning voters.