Donald Trump, after the second debate, is now over 60 percent in GOP polls: Following another debate in which he did not participate, the former president now has over 61 percent support in the Republican race, the Morning Consult poll found.
Donald Trump Dominates
The second Republican presidential debate took place last Wednesday, once again without the participation of former President Donald Trump. In fact, a Trump spokesperson declared the night of the debate that the Republicans should host no further debates. The campaign reiterated that call in an additional statement this week.
It does not appear that the second debate had much of an effect on the dynamics of the race. In fact, it appears Trump is winning even more.
According to the latest Morning Consult tracking poll, released Monday, Donald Trump now has 61 percent support in the Republican contest, nearly 50 points ahead of the rest of the field.
Gov. Ron DeSantis remains in a distant second place with 13 percent, while Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy – who tangled directly with each other in the second debate — are tied for third place with 7 percent each. Former Vice President Mike Pence has 5 percent, while Gov. Chris Christie has 3 percent.
Sen. Tim Scott, per the survey, is down to just 1 percent, which ties him with Gov. Doug Burgum, while former Gov. Asa Hutchinson has zero percent, as does former Rep. Will Hurd. Neither Hutchinson or Hurd was included in the second debate.
The poll’s release said that Ramaswamy appears to have receded from his peak, which had him in double digits last month, while Haley has gained a few points. But along with the rest of the field, both remain far behind the former president.
Trump implied at a rally last week that he will not choose his vice presidential running mate from among the current presidential candidates. Such candidates as Haley and Ramaswamy are seen as eying a future role in a second Trump Administration, possibly as vice president. This came the day before Trump’s spokesperson said there should be no more debates this year.
Morning Consult now has Biden and Trump tied in a potential general election rematch, each with 43 percent support, while Biden leads DeSantis 42 percent to 39 percent.
The poll also found that Trump has 77 percent popularity with the Republican electorate, while Christie has just 24 favorability. The former New Jersey government drew some guffaws, in the second debate, when he denounced Trump as “Donald Duck,” for “ducking” the debate.
The RealClearPolitics average currently has Trump leading by an average of 1.2 points against Biden in polls of a hypothetical general election matchup. The polls of late have been all over the place, with a recent Economist/YouGov survey showing Biden up by five points, while last week’s ABC News/Washington Post poll had Trump leading by 10, a poll seen by many as an outlier compared to other recent ones.
The new polling arrives following Trump’s latest big loss in court when a New York judge last week ruled against the former president and canceled his business certifications in that state. That came ahead of the start of Trump’s fraud trial.
“In defendants’ world: rent regulated apartments are worth the same as unregulated apartments; restricted land is worth the same as unrestricted land; restrictions can evaporate into thin air; a disclaimer by one party casting responsibility on another party exonerates the other party’s lies,”Judge Arthur Engoron wrote in his ruling this week. “That is a fantasy world, not the real world.”
“The rarely used Executive Law that the N.Y.A.G. is proceeding under is VERY UNFAIR, and being used against me for that reason,” the ex-president wrote on Truth Social this week. “NY Executive Law 63 (12) does not require a victim, traditional elements of fraud are eliminated (the only such law!), the law allows a politically elected partisan prosecutor to convince a politically elected judge, who may be friends, to destroy even a Political Opponent. This law may not be Constitutional and is not FAIR, and that is why terrible A.G. James chose it to use against me!!!”
Author Expertise and Experience:
Stephen Silver is a Senior Editor for 19FortyFive. He is an award-winning journalist, essayist and film critic, who is also a contributor to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Broad Street Review and Splice Today. The co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle, Stephen lives in suburban Philadelphia with his wife and two sons. Stephen has authored thousands of articles over the years that focus on politics, technology, and the economy for over a decade. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @StephenSilver, and subscribe to his Substack newsletter.
