Poll finds 43 percent of Republicans want a primary opponent for Trump

More than 40 percent of Republicans want to see President Trump face a GOP challenger in the primary before the 2020 election, according to a new poll.

Forty-three percent of Republicans in the poll conducted by Monmouth University said they want to see a contested primary. Forty-nine percent of Republican respondents said they hope Trump will run unopposed.

{mosads}Even with a sizable portion saying they would like to see a Republican challenge the sitting president, the poll found that Trump would likely defeat any potential foe.

In a primary against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Trump received 66 percent support in the poll compared to Cruz’s 21 percent. And against Ohio Gov. John Kasich, Trump won 73 percent compared to Kasich’s 14 percent.

“It’s not clear that any Republican, whether a past challenger or new blood, would have a realistic shot at taking the nomination. The party’s base belongs to Trump,” said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute.

Both Kasich and Cruz ran for president in 2016 but bowed out early, with Kasich being the last to exit the GOP primary after it was clear Trump was on his way to winning the nomination.

Kasich is reportedly considering a challenge to Trump in 2020 and is currently a contributor to CNN.

The poll was conducted between Jan. 25-27 and surveyed a subgroup of 335 registered Republicans over the phone with a margin of error of plus or minus 5.4 percentage points.