DeSantis gains ground with conservatives over Trump for 2024 nominee: poll

More Republicans and GOP-leaning independents say they would prefer Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to run for president in 2024 over former President Donald Trump, according to a new poll. 

While 35% of Republicans and Republican-leaners want Trump to run in 2024, 42% said they wanted DeSantis to run, according to a Yahoo News/YouGov poll released Saturday. Even among those classified as "strong Republicans," Trump is two points ahead of DeSantis for 2024 at 45% to 43%. 

Voters who "lean toward the Republican party" overwhelmingly favor DeSantis over Trump at 45% for DeSantis and 21% for Trump, the poll shows. 

The survey also showed that a plurality of Democrats was surprised by how many seats their party won in the midterm elections as 32% of Democrats said they won more seats than expected. 

The poll was conducted from Nov. 9-11, with 1,500 adult U.S. citizens and the margin of error is 3%. 

While the survey was being conducted, Trump attacked DeSantis in a series of posts on Truth Social, calling him "Ron DeSanctimonious" and an "AVERAGE Governor," among other things.