Former President Trump has a wide lead over former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley in his home state, according to a new poll.
A new Monmouth University/Washington Post poll shows that Released on Thursdayfound that 58 percent of South Carolina’s potential Republican primary voters currently support Trump for the nomination. This gives the former president a 26-point lead over Haley, who had 32% support among poll respondents.
Trump and Haley have gained support since becoming the only two major candidates left in the Republican primary. The former president has increased his approval rating by 12 points since September 2023, and Haley has increased his approval rating by 14 points over the same period.
Polls suggest that Haley, who also served as ambassador to the United Nations during the Trump administration, needs to regain significant support if she wants to do well in the Feb. 24 South Carolina primary. And last month, he vowed to stay in the race in New Hampshire until Super Tuesday, March 5.
By comparison, The Hill/Decision Desk’s average poll in the state shows Trump leading Haley by just over 36 percent (62 percent to 29.7 percent).
President Trump’s legal issues are not an issue among potential Republican South Carolina primary voters, according to a Monmouth University and Washington Post poll. About 60% said Republicans should keep him on the ballot if he wins the nomination but is convicted of a crime related to the 2020 election.
Additionally, 62% said they would vote for President Biden in the general election even if he was convicted, and 17% said they would vote for President Biden. The poll found that 90% of current Trump supporters said they would vote for Trump over Biden even if he were convicted.
The poll was conducted Jan. 26-30 among 815 likely South Carolina Republican primary voters and has a margin of error of 3.9 percentage points.
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