As more candidates announce their 2024 intentions, all eyes are on the Sunshine State.
Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida has said he won’t make a decision on a national campaign until May at the earliest.
But America’s Governor is giving President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris a new reason to be nervous about their future prospects.
While more Republicans are lining up to challenge former President Donald Trump for the top of the GOP ticket in 2024, all eyes are on the Sunshine State.
Polling indicated the only candidate who could pose a real threat to a third White House run for Trump is Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
DeSantis has said he has “unfinished business,” in the Florida legislature and won’t make a decision on a national campaign until May at the earliest.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the aisle, President Joe Biden appears dead set on running for re-election in a year where he’ll be 81-years old.
However, his Vice President Kamala Harris is waiting in the wings hoping her boss passes on another run in 2024.
In the midst of all this, The Economist and YouGov teamed up to put out a poll showing the approval ratings of all the biggest names in politics.
The survey has America’s Governor with 48% approval compared to just 30% nationwide – a 9-point positive approval rating – which is almost unheard of in recent history.
That’s the best approval of anyone the survey asked about.
To get a better idea if DeSantis’ popularity is real or just an outlier, one can turn to the Real Clear Politics average.
According to the RCP average of all the polling, DeSantis still has the highest approval numbers of all the major party leaders – with about a five and a quarter net positive rate.
The only other person on the survey with a net positive is new Democrat leader of the House of Representatives and New York Congressman, Hakeem Jeffries – but not by much at just three-quarters of a point.
And House Minority Leader Jeffries numbers are deceiving as he’s new in his role and only about half of respondents had heard of him and had an opinion to give – far lower than all the other people polled.
Coming in third is President Biden with a negative ten and a quarter rating.
However, Biden’s numbers are boosted because of his strong performance in just one poll – the previously mentioned Economist/YouGov survey.
If not for that one survey, his numbers would be much worse.
After the sitting President comes his Veep, Kamala Harris at negative twelve-points.
Harris is just slightly ahead of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) who is at negative twelve and a half points.
New Speaker of the House Rep. Keven McCarthy (R-CA) – coming off a long and difficult journey to his new post – is sitting at negative fourteen points.
That’s a little better than Trump, who has a negative seventeen-point approval rating.
But the dubious honor of last place goes to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell – and it’s not even close.
The senior Senator from Kentucky only has about a 20% approval compared to 52% disapproval – for a net of negative thirty-two-points.
Political Animal News will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this ongoing story.
