Charlie Crist leads Ron DeSantis amid COVID-19 surge
By Janelle Irwin Taylor / Florida Politics
U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist narrowly leads Gov. Ron DeSantis in a hypothetical head-to-head matchup, according to the latest survey from St. Pete Polls.
The results come as DeSantis continues to face criticism for his COVID-19 response amid a major surge in cases and hospitalizations that is making Florida the epicenter of the pandemic.
While his lead is barely within the poll’s 1.6% margin of error, 45% of respondents indicated they’d vote for Crist, a Democrat who formerly served as Governor as a Republican, while just 44% said they’d cast a ballot for DeSantis. Another 11% are still undecided.
That’s a big step up for Crist who, in previous polls, was trailing DeSantis by as much as double digits.
A previous St. Pete Polls survey taken in late May found Crist in a much weaker position. Asked about Crist’s chances of beating DeSantis at the time, about 30% of voters gave the Congressman better than even odds to unseat the Republican incumbent. Another 38% gave him a 50/50 chance of winning, while 27% saw only a small chance of victory for Crist.
The poll also confirms previous ones showing Crist likely has a better shot at unseating the Republican Governor than his Democratic opposition, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried.
