Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis holds a commanding lead in his reelection campaign against Charlie Crist in a state that has continued to turn more conservative and welcoming of center-right Republicans.
In a new survey provided to Secrets on Tuesday, DeSantis leads Crist, the former Democratic governor and House member, 50%-41%.
The governor and national leader against corporate America’s “woke” agenda also leads by 24 points among men and conservatives in the state where conservatives outnumber liberals by nearly 3-1.
DeSantis also holds a solid lead among Hispanics and especially Cuban Americans, according to pollster Rick Shaftan, of Neighborhood Research and Media.
“The governor led 50-42 among the 94% of respondents surveyed in English, and 38-29 with the 6% surveyed in Spanish,” Shaftan said in his memo shared with Secrets.
DeSantis, who also dominates the race for donations, is ahead of Crist among most groups except Democrats and those who put abortion rights at the top of their issue list. However, said Shaftan, only 2% of Florida voters said abortion rights are their No. 1 issue.
Most Floridians put the economy and education at the top of their issues, and the current governor wins on those.
“DeSantis led 60-27 among voters mentioning inflation or the economy as the number one issue facing Florida,” said Shaftan.
Those supporting DeSantis said they like his style of leadership and willingness to take on social issues many politicians shun, such as critical race theory and “woke” corporations.
“When asked what they liked most about Ron DeSantis, 14% say he is a strong and unafraid leader who stands his ground, 10% of his favorables said he is ‘for the people.’ Ten percent liked his COVID policies, 10% said he has done a good job as governor, 10% say he is honest or a straight-shooter,” said the memo.
Crist supporters like that he is not like DeSantis or former President Donald Trump.
“More than a quarter of Crist’s favorables are essentially that he’s the guy running against DeSantis. None of the leading answers reference anything in his past other than generalities about ‘experience,’ ‘honesty’ and a ‘good job.’ It’s all pretty weak,” said the GOP pollster.
He added that in the polarized state, DeSantis should do better because more voters appear to like his style. “While Crist appeals to an angry base that hates DeSantis, he struggles with a weak personal identity contrasting totally with DeSantis’s reputation for strength and dedication to principle — something Crist’s wishy-washy party-switching reputation only reinforces,” said Shaftan. Crist was a former Republican governor who switched parties to run for the Senate, but lost.
Overall, Shaftan said that the way DeSantis has governed and run for reelection so far is a good model for other Republican candidates.
“DeSantis’s aggressive strategy of appealing to his base to gin turnout is the formula for GOP success in 2022, 2024, and beyond,” he said.
