Former President Donald Trump is gaining support among college-educated voters, cementing his double-digit lead over Republican primary competitors.
In a new analysis from Sabato's Crystal Ball, the authors noted that Trump is leading by a lot among blue-collar voters or those who are not college-educated, as expected. But they underlined that Trump's share of white-collar or college-educated voters also increased.
TRUMP LEAD OVER PRIMARY OPPONENTS HOLDS STEADY, BIDEN GAINS SUPPORT: POLL
Sabato's Crystal Ball said in March that any Republican competitor in the primary must consolidate these college-educated voters behind them to have a shot at beating Trump.
Polling at the beginning of 2023 conducted by Echelon Insights showed that Republican voters with bachelor's degrees and higher preferred Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), who had not yet entered the race, to Trump. The Florida governor was preferred in a hypothetical primary by 37% of those with bachelor's degrees and 33% with graduate degrees. Trump was favored by 33% and 31%, respectively, among the groups.
In the months since, no other candidate has been able to win the consensus support of this group, resulting in a growing inclination toward Trump among them.
June data from Echelon Insights show a significant increase in college-educated support for Trump, surpassing 50% from people with bachelor's degrees. Trump's support surpassed the group's support for DeSantis. While DeSantis is preferred by a notable percentage of those with bachelor's (42%) and graduate (40%) degrees, Trump boasts a 10-point lead among the latter. The former president is also preferred by 46% of those with graduate degrees.
College-educated voters have not historically been Trump's chief constituency. In fact, he was able to beat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election with just 29% of his support coming from voters with college degrees.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
While Trump doesn't require significant backing from this demographic, expanding support from them has allowed the former president to maintain his lead over GOP competitors, even if they chip away at some of his base.
Sabato's Crystal Ball authors concluded that while Trump has steady support among his base, he is actually "doing better than he needs" when it comes to these white-collar voters, particularly in the key early caucus state of Iowa.