RON DeSantis has beaten Donald Trump with a 74 percent GOP approval rating as the Florida governor mulls a 2024 run for president.
The early poll of Republican voters put DeSantis narrowly ahead of the former president who received the backing of 71 per cent of those questioned.
The poll was conducted at the Western Conservative Summit in Denver over the weekend with 371 people surveyed.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz came in a distant third with 43 percent.
Those surveyed were asked to "vote for all candidates you approve of for president in 2024".
A total of 275 voted for first-term governor DeSantis; Trump received 265 votes.
Dad-of-three DeSantis, who has been married to wife Casey for more than a decade, has not confirmed a run for office.
But the Trump ally has become a popular figure among GOP voters following his handling of coronavirus.
He topped Trump as the next potential GOP nominee in the 2024 presidential election, according to data released by forecast research firm PredictIt in April.
And Trump said earlier this month he would consider DeSantis as his running mate in 2024 in a public snub to former Vice President Mike Pence.
Trump himself has teased running for president again in 2024 but has not yet announced a formal decision.
He told The Dan Bongino Show "we're going to make you very happy" when asked whether he is considering rerunning in 2024.
And speaking to conservative talk show host Joe Pags Trump said his decision to run or not in the 2024 presidential election will "most likely" come after the 2022 midterm elections.
He said: "I don't know exactly when I can say it but it's something I am very very strongly considering.
"Everybody wants me to do it, the polls are all saying I have to do it. I will be making a decision maybe before but possibly more likely right after the 2022 election."
DeSantis will not be able to prevent Trump from being extradited to New York City if he is indicted, a prosecutor said in May.
The comments from Palm Beach County’s top prosecutor, State Attorney Dave Aronberg, come after reports that officials were drawing up “contingency plans” in the event that Trump was charged with a crime.
The former president is at the center of a probe by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office into whether he and his business committed banking and tax fraud.
Speaking to CNN Newsroom, Aronberg said even DeSantis would only be able to delay Trump’s extradition, not stop it completely.
Trump is also facing a separate tax fraud investigation by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Source: Read Full Article