President Donald Trump is kicking off his bid for a second term in Orlando on Tuesday--and a new poll shows him behind some of the leading Democratic hopefuls in the always pivotal swing state of Florida.
Quinnipiac University released a poll on Tuesday showing former Vice President Joe Biden, currently the favorite for the Democratic presidential, with the lead over Trump in Florida. Biden takes 50 percent while Trump gets 41 percent. U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., also leads Trump, according to the poll, up 48 percent to 42 percent.
"Florida Republicans have won the last five major statewide elections, all by very close margins, but Sunshine State Democrats see these very early numbers as a sign that their losing streak might be coming to an end," said Peter Brown, the assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll. “President Donald Trump trails both former Vice President Joseph Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders in general election matchups and basically ties other leading Democratic challengers."
As Brown noted, other potential Democratic nominees have smaller leads in the poll. U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., leads Trump 47 percent to 43 percent in Florida. U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., and former U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-Tex., both edge Trump 45 percent to 44 percent. South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg takes 44 percent and Trump pulls 43 percent when matched up together.
Florida divides along gender and racial lines when Trump is matched against Biden. Women go for Biden 58 percent-34 percent while Trump is ahead with men 49 percent to 42 percent. Trump takes a majority of white voters in Florida--52 percent--while Biden lags with 42 percent. Biden is up with black voters 79 percent to 9 percent and leads Trump with Hispanics 57 percent to 32 percent.
Both Trump and Biden have nailed down their party bases as the president takes 90 percent of Republicans and Biden gets 91 percent of Democrats. But voters outside the major parties go for Biden 54 percent to 32 percent.
While he carried Florida in 2016, Trump is upside down in the Sunshine State with 51 percent disapproving of him and 44 percent approving of him. That is the best Trump has done in any Q-Poll of Florida since he was elected and the president has been helped by his economic record. A majority of those surveyed--54 percent--say they are financially better off now than they were in 26 while less than a quarter--23 percent--say they are worse off.
Floridians believe overwhelmingly that Trump should not be impeached. Around a third of voters in Florida--32 percent--think Trump should be impeached while 62 percent are against impeachment.
The poll of 1,279 voters in Florida was taken from June 12 through June 17 and had a margin of error of +/- 3. 3 percent.
