DeSantis, Haley neck-and-neck for 2nd in GOP primary; Trump holds wide lead: poll

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley are neck-and-neck for second place in the 2024 GOP primary, new polling shows, while former President Trump holds onto first with a wide lead.

A NewsNation/Decision Desk HQ poll found 11 percent of Republican voters picked DeSantis as their first choice, and 10 percent picked Haley.

The pair of White House hopefuls have been jostling for the second-place slot behind Trump, hoping to narrow the former president's lead.

Trump snagged 60 percent support, a wide double-digit lead over his two closest competitors, according to the survey. The other candidates have struggled to close the gap.

Entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy scored around 6 percent, and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie (R) saw roughly 3 percent. North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum (R) and former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) each got just 1 percent or less. 

DeSantis was long considered the former president’s closest rival, but Haley has seen boosts from her debate performances over the last few weeks and has appeared to close in on the Florida governor for the runner-up slot in some states.

Qualified GOP presidential candidates are headed this week to the party's fourth debate in Tuscaloosa, Ala., where they'll go head-to-head in what's likely one of their last opportunities to make their case to a wide Republican audience before voting kicks off in January.

Trump, who skipped the first three debates, plans to sit this one out also. Instead, he is scheduled to attend a private fundraiser in Florida, a source familiar with the plans confirmed to The Hill.

The former president faces a number of hurdles as he tries to return to the White House, including multiple ongoing legal battles.

A 57 percent majority of all survey respondents, including 29 percent of Republicans, said they support disqualifying Trump from the ballot if he is convicted in one or more of the criminal cases he faces.

The NewsNation/Decision Desk HQ poll surveyed 1,090 registered, self-identified Republican voters between Nov. 26-27, and it has a margin of error of roughly 2 percentage points.

NewsNation, who will host the Dec. 6 debate, is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which also owns The Hill.