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A record number of Republican voters say their loyalty lies with the party rather than with Donald Trump, throwing the former president a curveball as he reportedly prepares to announce a third White House bid.
Almost two-thirds (62%) of Republicans say they identify themselves as supporters of the GOP rather than just supporters of Trump, compared to about 30% who report feeling the other way around, according to a poll from NBC News. Another 4% say they equally support the Republican Party and Trump.
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The poll reflects a nationwide trend of declining support for the former president over the last two years since Trump left office. The new numbers show a significant drop in support from August 2021, when about 50% of Republicans said they supported the party over Trump, according to a similar NBC poll.
It’s not clear what is pulling the president’s numbers down, although Trump has been under increased scrutiny after becoming the subject of several investigations into efforts to overturn the 2020 election and the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
The new polling comes at a crucial time for Trump, as the former president is expected to announce a bid for a 2024 presidential run as soon as Nov. 14. Political strategists have long predicted Trump would announce a presidential bid sooner rather than later, hoping to get ahead of similar ambitions by some likely rivals, such as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
However, polling suggests DeSantis could have a leg up on Trump as Republican voters are increasingly warming up to the Florida governor over the former president. About 72% of Republican voters say DeSantis should have a great deal or good amount of influence over the party’s direction compared to 64% who said the same about Trump, according to an ABC News/Ipsos poll released in October.
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DeSantis has not yet indicated whether he’d seek a White House run, but the Florida governor is considered a top contender.
The NBC News poll surveyed 1,000 voters between Nov. 3-5 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
