Florida voters back DeSantis, Trump over Biden, but oppose concealed carry, restrictions on abortion: poll

Editor’s note: A recent poll showed that a majority of Florida Republicans oppose banning abortion at six weeks with no exceptions for rape or incest. An early version of this story misrepresented the survey’s question.

Registered Republicans in a new University of North Florida poll showed support for state Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) as a potential contender for a 2024 presidential bid. 

The new poll, published Thursday, found that 52 percent of registered Republican respondents in the state said they would vote for DeSantis in a 2024 Republican presidential primary, while 27 percent of those surveyed said would cast their votes for former President Trump. 

Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, who announced her presidential campaign last month, came in third, with 4 percent of registered Republican respondents saying they would vote for her, followed by former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), who received support from 3 percent of respondents, and former Vice President Mike Pence, who received support from 2 percent of those surveyed. 

When asked to choose between Trump and DeSantis in a head-to-head race, 59 percent of state Republican respondents said they would vote for DeSantis, and 28 percent of those surveyed said they would vote for Trump. 

When asked about an hypothetical 2024 match-up between President Biden and Trump, 50 percent of state respondents said they would vote for Trump, while 43 percent of  those surveyed said they would cast a vote for Biden, according to the poll. 

When asked the same question about a hypothetical DeSantis-Biden 2024 match-up, 51 percent of state respondents said they would vote for DeSantis as 42 percent of those surveyed said they would cast their vote for Biden. 

The poll comes as DeSantis, whose name has been mentioned as a top potential presidential candidate in 2024, used his State of the State address on Tuesday to highlight how he fought back against “woke” culture in his state and touted his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

DeSantis’s State of the State address also marked the beginning of a 60-day legislative session in Florida. State Republicans, who won supermajorities in both chambers of the legislature last November, are expected to move quickly on bills such as allowing residents to carry a concealed weapon without a license in the state and stronger restrictions on abortion. 

When asked about a potential open-carry concealed weapon law, 62 percent of state Republican respondents said they oppose the proposed bill, while 36 percent of those surveyed said they support the passing of the bill. 

Sixty-one percent of state Republican respondents said they oppose banning abortions after six weeks of pregnancy with no exceptions for rape or incest, and 34 percent said they support such restrictions. 

The poll did not specify that under the most recent text of Republicans’ abortion bill, the state government would make exceptions to the abortion ban in cases of rape or incest.

The University of North Florida survey was conducted from from February 25 to March 7, with a total of 1,452 respondents participating. The poll’s margin of error was 2.57 percentage points.

—Updated Tuesday at 12:56 p.m.