Post Debate Poll: Trump 61, DeSantis 9; Trump 44, Biden 41; Only Three Percent of Democrats Want Trump as GOP Nominee

A New York Post Post – Leger poll taken after the GOP presidential debate this week shows President Trump crushing his closest primary rival, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, 61 to 9 percent while topping Joe Biden 44 to 41 percent in a general election matchup.

The poll also throws cold water on the idea that Democrat prosecutors at the federal and state level are bringing case after case against Trump in order to help him become the Republican nominee to set him up for a general election defeat. Only three percent of Democrats surveyed said they want Trump to be the 2024 GOP presidential nominee, with former Rep. Liz Cheney (WY) (16 percent) and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (11 percent) being their top choices.

The poll was conducted Wednesday night and Thursday with 1800 online respondents described as “1,800 Americans 18 years of age or older. Out of those, 534 watched the Republican Primary Debate.” The poll has a 2.3 percent margin of error. The Republican voter preference sample is 658 registered voters.

Among Republicans who watched all or part of Wednesday’s debate, 23 percent said upstart Ohio businessman Vivek Ramaswamy won, while 21 percent said Florida Governor Ron DeSantis won.

The poll result for 658 Republican voters who were asked, “Which candidate would you like to see as the Republican candidate for president in 2024?”:

Trump 61, DeSantis 9, Ramaswamy 5, Pence 5, Scott 3, Haley 2, Christie 1, Cheney 0, Hurd 0, Someone else, 2, I don’t know 14.”

Interestingly, the poll shows Trump winning the young adult vote in the GOP primary and general election. Among those 18 to 34 years-old: Trump 58 percent, Pence 6 percent, DeSantis, Ramaswamy and Someone else at 5 percent each with 12 percent saying “I don’t know.”

In the general election among those aged 18-34, Trump gets support from 48 percent to Biden’s 34 percent with 17 percent preferring someone else. Trump tops Biden among men 47 to 41 while he is tied at 41 to 41 among women.