New Republican Primary Poll Puts Ron DeSantis in Fifth Place, as Long Shot Trump Challengers Get a Boost

A CNN-University of New Hampshire poll released Wednesday shows that DeSantis has dropped 13 points since a survey conducted in July

A new poll puts Ron DeSantis in fifth place among 2024 Republican presidential candidates, with some candidates — including tech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley — surging ahead, but still not quite enough to pose a serious threat to former President Donald Trump.

The CNN-University of New Hampshire poll released Wednesday shows that DeSantis has dropped 13 points since a survey conducted in July. The poll shows DeSantis sitting at 10% among likely GOP primary voters, with Ramaswamy at 13% and Haley at 12%. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, meanwhile, is at 11%. Trump is still the first choice, at 39%.

The news is the latest in a series of setbacks for DeSantis, who announced his presidential campaign in May and was initially thought to be the candidate who could take on Trump.

Related: Former DeSantis Mega-Donor Says He's Not Ready to Contribute to Any 2024 Presidential Candidates

In the months since, his presidential campaign reportedly fired numerous campaign staffers amid financial woes and lackluster poll numbers, as wealthy donors publicly announced they weren't ready to support the governor's presidential ambitions.

Just this week, billionaire Ken Griffin — who previously donated $5 million to a political action committee backing DeSantis’ gubernatorial reelection bid — told CNBC: “I don’t know his strategy. It’s not clear to me what voter base he is intending to appeal to.”

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Other donors and political strategists have wondered the same. In recent years, DeSantis has focused much of his campaign energy on promoting his extreme positions on things like book bans and abortions — as well as a more-than-year-long fight with Walt Disney World that's turned many donors off.

But the DeSantis campaign has also been accused of being "too online," as it has promoted memes and ads that have at times caused controversy (like one anti-LGBTQ+ ad attacking Trump for celebrating Pride Month) and have seemingly only been directed at a narrow audience.

While DeSantis' poll numbers have dropped, Ramaswamy, Haley and Christie have seen a dramatic improvement in recent weeks. (Former Vice President Mike Pence and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott seem to have largely fallen off people's radars, along with a handful of others in the race who have struggled to garner attention.)

Related: Ron DeSantis and Other Republican Candidates Show Support for Donald Trump in First 2024 Debate

Ramaswamy, a far-right entrepreneur, made a name for himself for being outspoken against companies using their platforms for social causes, and has criticized things like critical race theory, self-victimization and efforts to stop climate change.

Haley, meanwhile, has been one of the few Republicans to criticize Trump, calling him  "the most disliked politician in America," and saying, “It is time for a new generational conservative leader," during the first Republican primary debate, which aired on Fox News in August.

"We have to look at the fact that three-quarters of Americans don't want a rematch between Trump and Biden. And we have to face the fact that Trump is the most disliked politician in America. We can't win a general election that way," she said.

All of the candidates — with the exception of Trump — are expected to participate in the second Republican primary debate, which will be held Sept. 27 at 9 p.m. ET.

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