A poll released Friday (May 19) shows Former President Donald Trump leads President Joe Biden by seven.
The Hill Harvard CAPS-Harris poll found Biden and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) deadlocked in a tie when poll respondents were asked who they would prefer in a face-off.
In summary, combining the results shows Trump’s apparent strength in the GOP primaries, as DeSantis plans to enter the race as early as May 25.
Trump has been leading DeSantis by double digits in several polls of GOP voters, with The Hill Harvard CAPS-Harris poll showing more voters prefer the former President in a matchup against Biden than those who prefer DeSantis in a Biden-DeSantis matchup.
The poll results fly in the face of DeSantis’s argument that he would be the stronger candidate of the two GOP frontrunners against Biden.
According to the poll, 47 percent of respondents shared they would vote for Trump if the 2024 election were held now and Trump and Biden were their respective party’s nominees.
Forty percent supported Biden, while 13 percent said they didn’t know or weren’t sure who would get their vote.
In a matchup between Biden and DeSantis, 42 percent of respondents chose Biden, and an equal percentage chose DeSantis. Sixteen percent said they didn’t know or weren’t sure who of the two men would get their vote.
In another potentially troubling sign for Democrats, Biden narrowly edged out former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley in the race with 40 percent to Haley’s 38 percent.
Friday’s poll comes as Trump is still seen as the Republican frontrunner to face Biden next year. DeSantis, who has not formally announced a bid for the 2024 White House race but is expected to soon, is considered Trump’s main challenger and is usually a close second.
