A new Emerson poll released Saturday found that former President Donald Trump continues to hold his lead as the GOP primary front-runner by 46 points.
Over the summer, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' support decreased by 11 points, whereas entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy's support increased by eight points; Trump's support remained steady and he remains tied with President Joe Biden (44%-44%)
"Biden's support is softer than Trump's, whose support is more locked-in," Emerson College pollster Spencer Kimball said. "Biden is more vulnerable to third-party options."
Emerson's polling for August finds GOP primary support for Trump at 56%, Ramaswamy and DeSantis both at 10%, and former Trump Vice President Mike Pence at 3%.
"Ramaswamy has improved among Republican voters with a postgraduate degree, a group that has previously been part of the DeSantis base," Kimball added. "In the June Emerson poll, 38% of postgraduates supported DeSantis in the primary, which has dropped to 14% this month. Instead, 17% support Ramaswamy and 32% Trump."
In a hypothetical 2024 presidential election matchup, Trump and Biden tied at 44% each, while 12% remained undecided. The June Emerson poll found Trump gained approximately one point in the hypothetical head-to-head matchup.
Polling took place from Aug. 16-17, 2023, sampling 1,000 registered voters, and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.