Nikki Haley Leads DeSantis In Race For Second Place, New Poll ...
Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley overtook Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ second-place position in the GOP primary in a new Wall Street Journal poll—the latest survey to show his support among voters is slipping while Haley continues to build clout and her campaign coffers.
Republican presidential candidates former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, left, and Florida ... [+] Governor Ron DeSantis during the NewsNation Republican Primary Debate inside the Moody Music building at the University of Alabama on Wednesday, December 6, 2023 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Joshua Lott/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The Washington Post via Getty Images Key FactsThe survey, taken Nov. 29-Dec. 4, found 15% of voters support Haley, compared to 14% who back DeSantis, representing a seven-point increase for Haley since the Journal’s poll four months ago and a one-point drop for DeSantis.
Both trail far behind Trump, who leads the GOP primary field with 59%, according to the survey.
The poll continues Haley’s upward trajectory that has coincided with positive reviews of her performances in the first four GOP presidential debates—since the first debate in August, she has gained eight points in polls, while DeSantis has lost one point, according to FiveThirtyEight’s poll tracker.
Haley also led DeSantis by one point in a November Emerson College poll that found Trump netted 64% of support from voters, a five-point gain since last month.
5. That’s the number of points Haley leads President Joe Biden by in a hypothetical general election matchup, according to RealClearPolitics’ polling average. Trump leads Biden by two points.
Key BackgroundMonied donors have coalesced around Haley as an alternative to Trump amid her rise in polls and a series of strong debate performances. She earned a coveted endorsement from the influential Charles Koch-backed super PAC, Americans for Prosperity Action, last month, while other billionaires, including Democratic donor Reid Hoffman and JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon, have urged Wall Street and Democrats to support her in the GOP primary in hopes of thwarting Trump’s chances at securing the nomination. DeSantis has ramped up his attacks on Haley as she threatens his second-place standing. His campaign accused her of being a “liberal” after news broke that a pro-Haley super PAC received a $250,000 donation from Hoffman, highlighting her opposition as South Carolina governor to a proposal that would have required people to use bathrooms that correspond with their biological gender, among other statements she has made that could be viewed, without context, as aligning with Democratic ideology.
Crucial Quote“I have invested in the Stand for America PAC supporting Nikki Haley because I agree with Jamie Dimon’s recent comments that Democrats should support Haley in the primary and Biden in the general election,” Hoffman wrote Tuesday, explaining his donation to Haley and adding that he will “enthusiastically vote for Joe Biden” in the general election.
TangentHaley continued to stand out in the fourth GOP primary debate Wednesday in Alabama among a candidate field that has been whittled to four, aside from Trump, who has sat out the debates. She again sparred with biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who called her “a woke Dylan Mulvaney Bud Light ad,” an insult Haley rebuffed by saying “it’s not worth my time to respond to him.” Acknowledging that she was a target for her opponents, she pointedly said “I love all the attention, fellas. Thank you for that.”
What We Don’t KnowWhether Trump, facing 91 total criminal charges in his four indictments, will be convicted, and if he is, whether it will affect his standing with voters. Some surveys suggest it would, including an August Politico/Ipsos poll that found 32% of respondents said a conviction would make them less likely to support Trump and a Reuters/Ipsos poll, also in August, that found 45% of Republicans said they wouldn’t vote for him if he’s convicted.
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