DeSantis plummets in New Hampshire in new CNN poll

by Miranda Nazzaro - 09/20/23 5:22 PM ET

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) saw his support in New Hampshire tumble as some of his GOP rivals’ numbers continue to rise and surpass him in the key early-voting state, according to a new poll.

A CNN/University of New Hampshire poll published Wednesday found DeSantis has around 10 percent of the Granite State’s likely GOP primary voters, a 13-point drop since the last UNH survey in July.

Meanwhile, biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy’s support ticked up to 13 percent, an 8-point increase since July, passing DeSantis. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie also rose past DeSantis with 12 percent and 11 percent, respectively.

South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott had 6 percent of the vote, while former Vice President Mike Pence, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, former Rep. Will Hurd (Texas), former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and conservative radio host Larry Elder all had less than 2 percent.

Despite some of the candidates’ rise in numbers, former President Trump continues to maintain a strong lead, with 39 percent of the likely GOP primary vote.

DeSantis, who was once considered to be Trump’s main competitor, has struggled to catch up to the former president in recent weeks. A CNN poll published earlier this month showed Trump’s national lead over DeSantis widened to 34 points.

The numbers rolled in ahead of next week’s second GOP primary debate, where several candidates are set to take the stage at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California.

As of Wednesday, DeSantis, Ramaswamy, Pence, Haley, Scott and Christie have met the Republican National Committee’s qualifications for the second debate, which included signing a pledge to support the eventual GOP nominee.

Burgum and Hutchinson, who both qualified for the first debate and signed the pledge, have not yet qualified for next week’s debate.

As with the first debate, Trump has qualified for the second debate but plans to skip it to instead speak with autoworkers in Detroit.

The CNN/University of New Hampshire poll surveyed 2,107 Granite State Panel members — who were recruited randomly from phone numbers across New Hampshire — between Sept. 14-18. The poll has a margin of error of 2.1 percentage points.