Former President Donald Trump once again dominated the poll at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, with 62 percent of polled attendees saying they want him as the 2024 GOP nominee.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who skipped the annual confab that returned to the DC suburbs this year, was second again with 20 percent support.
Trump improved his performance from last February’s CPAC, where he received 55 percent support, while DeSantis’ support held steady. Last year, he got 21 percent when the conference was held in his home state of Florida.
Former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, who continues to falsely claim to have won her election, was voted the top choice to become Trump’s vice president.
Twenty percent of respondents chose Lake for VP, followed by 14 percent who said DeSantis and 10 percent who said former U.N. Amb. Nikki Haley, who announced last month that she would challenge Trump for the GOP nomination.
Former President Donald Trump again dominated the straw poll at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, with 62 percent of polled attendees saying they want him as the 2024 GOP nominee
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis held onto second place, this time with 20 percent of the CPAC straw polls. DeSantis skipped the conservative conference being held outside Washington, while Trump will headline Saturday night
Former Arizona gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, who still falsely claims she won her election, was named the top choice to become Trump’s vice president
Only 3 percent of CPAC attendees said they wanted to see Haley at the top of the GOP ticket.
Perry Johnson, a businessman and longshot Republican nominee, outperformed Haley in the CPAC straw poll, by 5 percent.
When Haley’s name was mentioned when polls were announced by pollster Jim McLaughlin, the pro-Trump crowd booed.
It’s no surprise that Trump led the pack — not only is he the de facto leader of the Republican Party, but CPAC has become ground zero for the MAGA faithful.
Since Wednesday, a parade of pro-Trump Republicans has taken the stage, including family members Donald Trump Jr., his fiancé Kimberly Guilfoyle and Lara Trump, as well as political acolytes such as Lake and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
Still, Haley and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, another potential GOP hopeful, defied the crowd.
Pompeo received just 1 percent support in the CPAC poll.
Republican presidential nominee Nikki Haley defied the Trump CPAC crowd to deliver a speech on Friday. When his name was mentioned during the announcement of the results of the straw survey, there was booing
Perry Johnson, a businessman and longshot Republican nominee, outperformed Haley in the CPAC straw poll, gaining 5 percent
Others likely to get in, including DeSantis and former Vice President Mike Pence, skipped this year’s meeting.
Former President George W. Bush strategist Karl Rove applauded DeSantis’ decision to reject CPAC, going so far as to call the straw survey “completely pointless.”
Attendees were also asked who they thought would be on top of the Democratic ticket.
Only 39 percent said they thought it would be Biden, followed by 23 percent who said California Governor Gavin Newsom would challenge Biden for the nomination and win.
After that, 14 percent of respondents said Michelle Obama — who has expressed no interest in running for president — while only 6 percent said it would be Vice President Kamala Harris.
CPAC attendees finally believe Hillary Clinton has retired from politics, with only 3 percent saying they expected her to be the Democratic nominee.
Last year, a whopping 22 percent believed Clinton would overtake Biden and become the Democratic nominee of 2024.
