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A new poll shows Rep. Byron Donalds holding a commanding lead in Florida’s Republican primary race for governor, outpacing his closest challengers by more than 30 percentage points.
The Mason-Dixon poll released Wednesday found Donalds, a congressman from southwest Florida, supported by 37 percent of Republican voters. Florida Lt. Gov. Jay Collins was a distant second at 7 percent, while former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner and businessman James Fishback each polled below 4 percent.
“Trump-endorsed Byron Donalds is the only proven conservative fighter who can unite Republicans, deliver on the President’s America First agenda, crush the Democrats and make Florida more affordable,” said Ryan Smith, chief strategist for the Byron Donalds for Governor campaign.
Donalds has been endorsed by President Donald Trump, Tesla CEO Elon Musk and numerous Florida elected officials.
Pollsters also measured each candidate’s favorability ratings. The survey shows that a majority of Republicans, 52 percent, view Donalds favorably, while only 3 percent hold an unfavorable opinion. Another 17 percent said they recognize Donalds but feel neutral about him, and 28 percent said they are unfamiliar with his name.
Most of the remaining candidates are largely unknown to voters. Roughly 73 percent said they do not recognize Collins, 74 percent were unfamiliar with Renner, and 81 percent said they had no awareness of Fishback.
Still, Collins posted some positive numbers. Eleven percent of respondents said they view him favorably, compared with just 1 percent who hold an unfavorable opinion, while 15 percent said they recognize his name but feel neutral.
Renner received a favorable rating from 9 percent of respondents, with 1 percent viewing him unfavorably and 16 percent expressing a neutral opinion.
Fishback recorded the lowest positive numbers. Five percent said they view him favorably, 4 percent unfavorably and 10 percent said they recognize his name but feel neutral.
The Republican primary for governor is scheduled for Aug. 18 and will be limited to registered Republicans.