President Joe Biden won big in the South Carolina Democratic primary on Saturday, taking 96.2% of the votes. With the Republican primary in the Palmetto State about three weeks away, new poll results released on Thursday suggest that it might not be as one-sided as its Democratic counterpart.
What Happened: In a Monmouth University-Washington Post poll, 58% of potential Republican primary voters in South Carolina support Donald Trump, while former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley trails with the support of 32%.
The poll, conducted both by telephone and online from January 26 to January 30, gathered responses from 815 potential Republican presidential primary voters in South Carolina.
Both candidates saw increased support compared to a previous poll in September 2023. Last fall, Trump led Haley by a 46%-18% margin. Since then, however, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy have dropped out of the race, leading to a boost in support for Trump and Haley.
The January poll showed that Trump commanded a majority support among men and women, and across all age groups. His support level was particularly high among white evangelicals and voters without a college degree.
Haley was backed by 46% of college graduates compared to 44% who sided with Trump.
A majority of the GOP voters favor Trump over Haley when it comes to handling major issues such as immigration, the economy and foreign policy.
Blind To Trump’s Legal Woes: About 60% said the Republican party should keep Trump on the ballot even if he wins the nomination and is convicted of attempting to overturn the 2020 election. The former president is facing multiple civil and criminal lawsuits in federal and state courts related to fraudulent business practices, election subversion and the mishandling of classified documents.
If Trump’s name appears on the general election ballot, 62% said they would vote for him even if he is convicted and only 17% said they would vote for Biden.
Trump More Winnable: Seventy percent of voters expressed the belief that Trump would either definitely or probably defeat Biden in November, with 42% specifically stating “definitely” and 29% saying “probably.” In comparison, just 21% said Haley would definitely beat Biden and 42% said she probably would.
“Trump's electability is a concern for some primary voters. It's just that this group is nowhere near large enough to put Haley in striking distance of the front-runner,” said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute.
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