Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has emerged as a formidable contender in the race for the White House, following his impressive showing in the recent GOP debate. The aftermath of the debate has seen DeSantis’s popularity soar, with a significant 8-point surge among Republicans, according to a new national poll.

The highly regarded InsiderAdvantage survey, which gauged likely Republican primary and caucus voters, underscores DeSantis’s newfound momentum. The poll places the Florida governor at a notable 18% in the GOP presidential contest. This surge represents a sharp increase from the 10% support he garnered just days before the opening debate on Wednesday.

Equally noteworthy is the ascent of another debate standout, Nikki Haley, whose powerful performance catapulted her support from 5% to an impressive 11%, as indicated by the poll results. Meanwhile, biotech mogul Vivek Ramaswamy maintained a steady position at 7% support.

Political consultant Ryan Girdusky praised DeSantis’s debate performance, noting that he projected a presidential demeanor on the stage. Girdusky highlighted that the key concerns dominating the minds of Republican voters in this election cycle are crime, immigration, and the economy. On all three fronts, DeSantis outperformed his rivals, solidifying his appeal to voters.

Former President Donald Trump, while still leading the pack with 45% support, experienced a 6-point decline as indicated by the post-debate poll encompassing 850 GOP voters. This drop in Trump’s support comes amid criticism from some Republicans for his absence at the debate. In an unprecedented twist, Trump also made history by becoming the first US president to have a mugshot taken.

The poll, released on Friday, bears a margin of error of 3%, reaffirming the volatility of the current political landscape. In response, Trump turned his attention to an alternative poll, taking to his social media platform Truth Social to share results from a new Reuters/Ipsos poll. Trump’s post asserted his lead over “Crooked Joe Biden” by margins of 6%, 7%, and 8% in various polls, predicting a potential indictment for his opponent.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll, which involved 1,004 adults, demonstrated Trump with a 38% lead over Biden’s 32% in a hypothetical general election rematch. Notably, 30% of respondents opted to withhold their endorsement from either candidate. The poll’s credibility interval stood at 6%, signifying the range of accuracy.

Within the smaller pool of 347 Republicans surveyed by Reuters/Ipsos, Trump emerged with a commanding 52% to 13% lead over DeSantis, his closest rival in the GOP primary race. This lead was further accentuated in a third post-debate poll by the Morning Consult, which projected a substantial 58% to 14% advantage for Trump over DeSantis. As the race for the White House intensifies, these polling shifts are sure to shape the narrative in the days to come.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)