Trump wins GOP primary big, loses to Biden in election: poll

Former President Donald Trump is dominating the Republican presidential primary field — but lagging slightly behind President Biden in general election predictions, according to a new poll.

A May Quinnipiac University poll found the 76-year-old Trump winning 56% support from GOP and right-leaning voters, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis sits at 25% support among the same voters.

Other Republican primary candidates are all polling in the low single digits, including former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley at 3%; former Vice President Mike Pence, South Carolina GOP Sen. Tim Scott and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie all at 2%; and eight other declared or likely candidates beneath 2% support.

Trump has also widened his lead against the 44-year-old DeSantis in a head-to-head GOP primary matchup from 52%-42% in March to 61%-32% this month.

“The first one out of the gate, in what for now still looks like a two-horse race, is moving at full gallop away from a slowly growing pack of contenders,” Quinnipiac polling analyst Tim Malloy said.

But in the general election Biden, 80, still beats Trump 48% to 46% among registered voters — a two-percentage point margin that remains unchanged since the last time Quinnipiac conducted its poll.

Meanwhile, DeSantis narrowly edges out Biden 47% to 46% in the general election prediction.

Quinnipiac conducted its survey of 1,819 US adults from May 18 to 22 with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.3 percentage points.

The university polled 1,616 self-identified registered voters with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.4 percentage points. 

Another 669 Republican and Republican-leaning voters were surveyed with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points.

Sixty-five percent of US voters believe Biden is too old to effectively govern for another term as president, including 90% of Republicans, 69% of independents and 41% of Democrats.

Fifty-nine percent of the same voters say Trump is not too old to effectively serve a nonconsecutive term, including 85% of Republicans, 55% of independents and 42% of Democrats.

“One candidate is 80, the other 76, but what a difference those four years make. Voters dispute the old saying that age is just a number, to the detriment of the President,” Malloy noted.

A majority of voters also have unfavorable views of Trump (56%), Biden (54%) and Pence (51%), according to the poll.

Slightly more voters — 40% to 39% — have a favorable view of the former president than the incumbent president.

Thirty-four percent of voters have a favorable view of DeSantis, whereas 42% have an unfavorable view.

Haley, the next closest Republican presidential candidate, has a 19% favorability rating and a 27% unfavorability rating.

On the whole, Republican voters and independents say they want a presidential candidate to be a great leader, while Democrats prefer one with great policy ideas.

Biden’s approval rating in the poll remains underwater, with 58% not approving of his leadership and 36% in support. A slightly lower number of registered voters (57%) disapprove of Biden.

Those disapproval numbers extend to Biden’s handling of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine (48%), foreign policy (54%), the economy (61%) and immigration issues (66%).

Sixty-eight percent of Americans believe the Biden administration has lost control of security at the southern border, with 20% saying it is coming under control.

A similar percentage — 71% — are concerned that Biden may also fail to hash out a deal with House Republicans over the nation’s debt ceiling, potentially triggering a default.

Americans are evenly split over who is responsibly handling negotiations, with 38% identifying Biden and Democrats and 37% pointing to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Republicans.

McCarthy currently enjoys the highest approval rating of any congressional leader, with 35% of Americans supporting him.

Thirty-four percent approve of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), 33% approve of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and 20% approve of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).

But 46% disapprove of McCarthy, 26% disapprove of Jeffries, 47% disapprove of Schumer, and 64% disapprove of McConnell.