Nearly half of prospective Republican primary voters in South Carolina support former President Donald Trump, according to a new survey released on Sunday, with former state Gov. Nikki Haley in second place.
According to a Fox Business poll, Trump has a 34-point advantage over the rest of the GOP primary field, with Haley trailing well behind at 14%. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis comes in at #13, followed by South Carolina Senator Tim Scott (R) at #10. No other candidates received more than 10% of the vote.
GOP pollster Daron Shaw said that at this early stage of the election, Trump is still garnering the most attention, and that the key is to determine who can become the non-Trump candidate. In South Carolina, that is now a three-way battle between DeSantis, Haley, and Scott.
The tweet below verifies the news:
Haley comes second in South Carolina GOP primary poll as Trump holds strong lead https://t.co/kLsa9DhT3H
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) July 23, 2023
Very conservative voters (57%) are the most enthusiastic about Trump, followed by voters under 45 (55%) and those without a college degree (53%). The same can be said about DeSantis among these factions, while moderates back Haley and Scott.
Many political observers are wondering if Trump will show up for the first 2024 Republican presidential primary debate on August 23 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, despite his significant national lead over his GOP rivals.
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While 29% of respondents said a candidate skipping a debate showed strength, 57% of those polled said it was a sign of weakness. Trump is undecided about taking part in the future debate.
From July 15-19, 2018, 808 likely Republican primary voters in South Carolina were questioned. There is a 3.5-point range of error associated with this survey.
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