The gap separating Donald Trump from his rivals for the Republican nomination keeps getting bigger. The latest polls put the former president 49 points ahead of Ron DeSantis, his main competitor, while the rest aren't even in double digits. With this data, several Republicans are asking the remaining candidates to follow the example of Mike Pence, William Hurd, Larry Elder and Francis Suárez and drop out of the race to support Trump or at least to consolidate the support of those who oppose the former president into one candidate.
Last week, polls from Morning Consulting and the University of Texas gave Trump a 49-point lead over DeSantis. In the last week, the Franklin & Marshall poll gave Trump a 41-point lead, while on Monday, a USA Today/Suffolk poll gave him a 46-point lead. This latest survey is the only one that gives a third candidate, in this case Nikky Haley, a double-digit percentage. Her 11% puts her in a virtual technical tie with the governor of Florida (12%).
The former president would have 62% of the votes
According to Morning Consult, Trump would have 62% of the votes if the primaries were held now. DeSantis follows with 13%. When it comes to candidates that have 10% or less, Haley leads the race, with 7%. Ramaswamy is close behind with 6% and Chris Cristie and Tim Scott are tied with 2%. Asa Hutchinson is at the bottom of the list with 1% of the votes. Pence had 5%.
Tracking the 2024 GOP Primary:
Trump: 62%
DeSantis: 13%
Haley: 7%
Ramaswamy: 6%
Pence: 5%
Scott: 2%
Christie: 2%
Hutchinson: 1%
Burgum: 0%
Someone Else: 1%
*Oct. 20-22, 2023View more: https://t.co/zpObC29kvJ pic.twitter.com/BjY3hkFVmQ
— Morning Consult (@MorningConsult) October 27, 2023
On Wednesday, the University of Texas confirmed the significant gap between the former president and the rest of the candidates. It also estimated that Trump would win 62% of the votes compared to the governor of Florida who is at 13%. The former ambassador to the UN comes in third place with 7%. The rest of the candidates have below 3% of the votes.
Texas 2024: Trump holds 49-point lead for Republican Nomination
• Trump — 62% (+49)
• DeSantis — 13%
• Haley — 7%
• Pence — 3%
• Ramaswamy — 3%
• Hutchinson — 1%
• Christie — 1%
• Scott — 1%@TxPolProject | 10/5-17 | 568 RVhttps://t.co/N0zdeNDYMw pic.twitter.com/A5nNUwuJv2— InteractivePolls (@IAPolls2022) October 25, 2023
The latest poll on the presidential primaries is from Franklin & Marshall. This one has the narrowest gap between Trump and the other candidates. Even so, it estimates Trump will win 55% of the vote among Republicans, 41 points above DeSantis (14%). Once again Haley rounds out the top three at 9%, ahead of Ramaswamy (5%), Christie (4%) and Scott (3%).
The GOP wants voters to back Trump or at least consolidate the remaining candidates into one rival
These results, along with fundraising difficulties, led former Vice President Pence to withdraw from the race. Many Republicans are asking the other candidates to follow suit. These Republicans want voters to get behind Trump. This would allow the party to focus its efforts on one single candidate. Some are even calling for Republicans to recognize Trump's superiority and unite the party behind him. This is the case, for example, of Senator Steve Daines, in statements to Politico.
I was surprised [that Pence withdrew], but I think that's the right move. Because it's clear that President Trump is going to be the nominee for Republicans for president, and the sooner we coalesce around him, the better it's going to be.
