The survey asked respondents, “If the Republican presidential primary were held today, which of the following candidates would you vote for?” Among Republicans, specifically, Trump has a massive lead in the primary, with 62 percent supporting the former president in a potentially crowded field. No one else listed comes remotely close. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis comes a distant second with 17 percent support — 45 points behind Trump.
Former Vice President Mike Pence came in third place, 11 points behind DeSantis with six percent support. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley came in right behind with five percent support, followed by former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (three percent), and anti-woke businessman Vivek Ramaswamy (two percent). Three percent are unsure, and two percent said “some other candidate.”
Notably, Trump also leads in the GOP primary among independent voters, garnering 34 percent to DeSantis’s 16 percent. However, 17 percent said “some other candidate.”
The overall Rasmussen reports survey was taken May 11 and 14-15, 2023, among 996 U.S. likely voters. It has a +/- 3 percent margin error.
