In the Florida gubernatorial primary, Ron DeSantis (R-Palm Coast) took almost twice the number of votes, 916,298 as Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum received with 552,164 during their primaries. Actually, DeSantis brought in nearly as many votes as both of his Democratic opponents, Andrew Gillum and Gwen Graham, combined: 916,298 to 997,039. A new poll indicates a startling role reversal.
In a just-released statewide poll taken by Florida’s Chamber of Commerce, the Tallahassee mayor led DeSantis (R-Palm Coast) by four percent, 47 t0 43. This was the first time Florida has taken a poll since the primaries. According to the Chamber poll, the mayor led in all major media markets with the exception of the Jacksonville metro area. In addition, undecideds came in at eight percentage points with those favoring another candidate at 2 percent. Traditionally, there are larger undecided percentages in voter polls.
This was a surprise, because Gillum was expected to come in third during his primary. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) came to help Gillum right before the primaries, and the money began pouring into the mayor’s coffers.
DeSantis hurt his candidacy with a racist comment. He urged Gillum, who is African American, not to:
‘Monkey this up by trying to embrace a socialist agenda with huge tax increases and bankrupting the state.’
DeSantis has been a Florida U.S. congressman, but apparently, he had little name recognition among voters. Senior Vice President of Political Strategy of the Florida Chamber of Commerce, Marian Johnson said:
‘It’s going to be interesting to see if Gillum, who is backing policies opposed by Bill Nelson, yet supported by Bernie Sanders, Tom Steyer and George Soros will hold onto this lead while voters begin to understand his background and policies, or if Ron DeSantis and his policies will continue gaining popularity and propel him to succeed Governor Scott as Florida’s next Governor. The election is more than 50 days away and that’s a lifetime in Florida politics.’
Rick Scott (R) left the governor’s seat to run for the U.S. Senate seat against sitting Senator Bill Nelson (D), who has held that seat since 2000.
At this point in time, more Democrats were registered to vote. However, 48 percent of likely voters considered Florida going in the right direction versus 37 percent who believe it was not.
Donald Trump has planned to support Republicans in tight races across the country. However, that may be a mixed blessing. Two recently released polls show him with his lowest-ever approval ratings 38 percent and 39 percent.
The newly-released Bob Woodward book Fear: Trump in the White House, the multiple indictments of members of the Trump campaign and other associates, and the anonymous New York Times op-ed from the revolution inside of the Trump administration hurt the president. In addition, POTUS’ own reactions and responses have damaged him.
The Florida Chamber poll was conducted by Cherry Communications from September 6th to 9th and interviewed 514 likely Floridian voter via cell phones (33 percent) and landlines (67 percent). The sample reach 210 Democratic voters, 205 Republicans, and 99 others.
The Chamber has always drawn from likely voters and newly registered voters as opposed to simple registered voters. That means, the interviewers screened them for their likelihood of voting against and for having a history of voting in previous elections.
The chamber held the poll right after the Florida lieutenant governor candidates were selected. This poll has a margin of error of 4.4 +/- percentage points.
Featured image is a screenshot via YouTube.
