A new poll is giving a snapshot of the Sunshine State, revealing voters are still trying to make up their minds, according to Gravis Marketing.
In the marquee race for governor, both Republicans and Democrats have large numbers of undecided voters, with 27 percent of Democrats and 43 percent of Republicans falling into that category.
Within the Republican field, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam leads Congressman Ron DeSantis 29-19.
“The attacks on DeSantis have hurt him,” said Doug Kaplan of Gravis Marketing. “Putnam is still gaining. He has all the money and a lot of people just don’t know who DeSantis is.”
On the Democratic side, the poll shows Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum with 29 percent, leading former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham (24 percent), former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine (17 percent) and Orlando businessman Chris King (3 percent).
The poll did not include Palm Beach businessman Jeff Greene, who announced his candidacy last week.
“Jeff Greene could be a wild card,” Kaplan said, referencing Greene’s personal fortune of $2.3 billion of which he has pledged to spend up to $200 million in the Democratic primary. “The debates have helped Gillum. He is the one the people at the debate are cheering for.”
Read: Democratic candidates for Florida governor hold 3rd debate
The survey comes with a disclosure caveat: For “full transparency, Gravis Marketing has been engaged by CATECOMM for access to our poll tracking analysis and CATECOMM is affiliated with the Andrew Gillum for Governor campaign.”
Meanwhile, the approval/disapproval rate for Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., and his opponent in the U.S. Senate race, Florida Gov. Rick Scott, are roughly the same, with Scott enjoying a slightly higher approval rate, but also with a slightly higher disapproval rate.
“This is going to be a close race, but there has been a lot of television,” Kaplan said.
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Underscoring all of these results are President Trump’s numbers in Florida, which have trended close to the national average. According to the poll, the Republican president's approval rating in Florida is at 40 percent, while his job performance rating is slightly lower, at 39 percent.
“Florida is a microcosm of the country. The president is getting 80-90 percent of the GOP base, but he is losing Democrats and independents by a wide margin,” said Kaplan.
Election season in the Sunshine State: Catch up on Florida politics here
The poll looked at a random survey of 1,251 registered, likely general election voters across Florida. The poll was conducted from May 31 through June 15 and has a margin of error of +/- 2.8 percentage points.
Cox Media Group
