DeSantis’s extreme right-wing ideas fail to resonate with swing voters seeking alternatives to Biden and Trump.
DeSantis’s extreme right-wing ideas fail to resonate with swing voters seeking alternatives to Biden and Trump.
Presidential hopeful and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s conservative stance and his culture war appeared to not sit well with several swing voters in the key state of Minnesota.
A group of Minnesota swing voters interviewed on Tuesday as part of Axios’ Engagious/Sago focus groups did not have good things to say about DeSantis. When asked to describe the governor in one word, respondents used the terms “abrasive,” “super-conservative,” “dangerous,” “erratic” and “unpredictable.”
Some of the respondents said they were not familiar with the governor, and one said it appeared as if DeSantis was trying to connect with former President Donald Trump’s base.
When the focus group participants were shown a campaign video in which the governor attacked Trump’s comments supporting the LGBTQ community, most respondents said the video was troubling.
“The fact that this video makes it seem like DeSantis is proud to be anti-trans because of pure hate towards a person just because of how they dress or decide to identify as is very troubling to me,” said one participant.
Another respondent said it was just “ridiculously catchy” and “dangerous” at the same time. “So people could be attracted to what they say. I was going to say we saw what happened in Germany 80 years ago,” said the participant, comparing DeSantis to Hitler.
The interview also revealed that voters are seeking alternatives to President Joe Biden and Trump. Still, DeSantis hasn’t been able to capitalize on voters’ anti-Biden and anti-Trump stances due to his extreme right-wing ideas, the report said.
Crime and the economy were the top concerns for voters in 2024, the report added.
Axios noted the focus group comprised swing voters, including people who voted for Trump in 2016 and Biden in 2020, with nine of the 13 identifying as independents, three as Republicans, and one as a Democrat.
Trump is the frontrunner in the Republican primary race with 49.7% of GOP voters favoring him compared to 21% of GOP voters who back DeSantis, according to FiveThirtyEight, which compiled polling numbers.
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Edited by Judy J. Rotich and Newsdesk Manager
