Though former President Donald Trump is still popular with the Republican base, if he decides to make another run for the White House in 2024, he may not have the support he once enjoyed.
A new poll by Echelon Insights shows that GOP support for a third presidential bid by Trump fell last month.
In December, 65 percent of Republicans said they would like to see Trump run in 2024 The poll showed that number had dropped to 45 percent.
Pollster Frank Luntz said that his focus groups of Trump supporters show that 51 percent would like to see the former president run again in 2024.
Those numbers also have dropped since the November election.
While his support may have dropped, Trump still leads against others in a generic 2024 GOP primary matchup
If Trump isn’t included in the poll, his running mate former Vice-President Mike Pence led the pack, followed by Donald Trump, Jr., former Gov. Nikki Haley, R-SC, and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. But, with the former president out of the mix, most Republicans said they were “unsure” on who their choice would be in 2024.
Still, the recent impeachment helped Trump with Republicans as a Politico/Morning Consult poll released this week found the former president bouncing back with his GOP base even as 53 percent of Republicans would back him for their party’s nomination in 2024.
“Republican voters got over any misgivings they had about Trump’s role on Jan. 6 very quickly,’ Politico noted. “Fifty-nine percent of Republican voters said they want Trump to play a major role in their party going forward. That’s up 18 percentage points from a Morning Consult poll conducted on Jan. 7, and an increase of 9 points from a follow-up poll on Jan. 25, before the impeachment trial began.
“While Trump’s overall favorability rating is an abysmal 34 percent in our latest poll, 81 percent of Republican respondents gave him positive marks. Trump was at 77 percent approval among Republicans on Jan. 7 and 74 percent on Jan. 25,” Politico added.
Regardless of whether Trump runs again or not, Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel said the national GOP will remain neutral in the 2024 primaries.
Whether or not Trump runs again, he has opened a leadership political action committee that allows him to raise and spend money.
Trump adviser Jason Miller said the former president was going to lay low and take it easy, enjoying golf but added that he would be getting back on social media. Trump has been more visible this week, weighing in to honor Rush Limbaugh after that radio host’s death and escalating his war of words with U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
Reach Ed Dean at ed.dean@floridadaily.com.
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