Former President Donald Trump has extended his lead to nearly 60% of all Republican primary voters who say he is their first choice despite four ongoing criminal prosecutions, which they say have no merit, according to a new Wall Street Journal poll.
Polling conducted by Fabrizio, Lee, and Associates, which is run by Tony Fabrizio, a longtime Trump pollster in partnership with the Wall Street Journal, shows Trump polling at 59%. His lead is at 46 points over his nearest competitor, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), who is at 13%. Despite being well behind Trump for the entire race, DeSantis has continually had a strong grasp on second place but is now losing support. The Florida governor is now barely in second place over former Republican South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who is at 8%.
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None of the other candidates have broken out of the single-digits
DeSantis has had a stark drop-off in the polls throughout the campaign season. In a Wall Street Journal poll from April, Trump was polling at 48%, and DeSantis, who hadn’t yet announced his bid, was polling at 24%.
Trump’s favorability rating is at 75%, having dropped slightly since April, when it was at 78%. On the other hand, DeSantis has seen his favorability rating drop dramatically since April. In the most recent polling, DeSantis’s favorability rating is at 70% — down from 84% in April.
DeSantis also has a slightly higher unfavorable rating than Trump. The Florida Governor has an unfavorability rating of 24%, compared to Trump's 23%.
The poll also found that for each of his indictments, more than 60% of Republican primary voters believe Trump’s prosecutions are “politically motivated and without merit.”
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For his prosecution in New York for alleged hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels, 61% believe it is “politically motivated and without merit.” For his classified documents prosecution, 67% believe this, and regarding the prosecution for his effort to overturn the 2020 election and his role in the Jan. 6 siege on the Capitol, 70% believe it is “politically motivated and without merit.” As for his most recent prosecution in Georgia, 71% believe it is “politically motivated and without merit.”
Nearly half of Republican Primary voters say the indictments make them more likely to vote for Trump.