Polls show that roughly six in ten Americans do not want Trump (or Biden) running for a second term. The populist right is not enough to put Trump back in the White House; yet, this is where most of his support lies. It’s just not enough for victory in a general election.
NY Post: "What Tuesday night’s midterm election results suggest is that former President Donald Trump is perhaps the most profound vote repellant in modern American history." pic.twitter.com/FbGtTcsmEr
— MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) November 10, 2022
Republican pushback against Trump
Even on the Republican side, more people are waking up to the negative effects Trump had on the GOP in the midterms. To many people, Trump cares more about his own ego than about bettering the Republican Party or the country.
This was seen when Trump ripped the Florida governor as “Ron DeSanctimonious” merely days before this month’s midterms. Trump did this with zero provocation from DeSantis.
Even people who would ordinarily support the former president said this was in bad form and indicated that Trump feels threatened by DeSantis.
At the end of the day, in a presidential election, DeSantis can win over voters who will never back Trump. He also doesn’t have the baggage that weighs the former president down. This makes DeSantis a better nominee for the GOP than Trump.
