Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) is now tied for 2nd place in the Republican presidential field with conservative entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, after an Emerson College poll showed the two tied at 10% each.
Former President Donald Trump leads the pack at 56%, according to the same poll.
DeSantis, meanwhile, dropped from 21% in June, while Ramaswamy rose from just 2% to tie DeSantis over the same period.
The poll's release coincides with a leaked memo from a DeSantis super PAC, Never Back Down, which urged the Florida governor to "take a sledgehammer" to Ramaswamy - who's been quickly closing in on Ron.
"Another boring, establishment attack from Super PAC-creation ‘Robot Ron’ who is literally taking lame, pre-programmed attack lines against me for next week’s debate. ‘Hammer Ramaswamy,' Ramaswamy wrote on X in response.
Another boring, establishment attack from Super PAC-creation “Robot Ron” who is literally taking lame, pre-programmed attack lines against me for next week’s debate. “Hammer Ramaswamy.” 😂 pic.twitter.com/u8puIW88jS
— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) August 17, 2023
Ramaswamy, in particular, has been improving his support with voters who have postgraduate degrees - who support him by 17%, and 16% of voters younger than 35. DeSantis has been losing support over the same period - dropping among postgraduate voters from 38% in June to just 14% now. Just 15% of those under 35 support the Florida governor, according to The Hill.
The release states that DeSantis’s drop is similar to that of Emerson’s New Hampshire poll that showed former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) surpassing DeSantis by 1 point for second place in the state, a statistical tie.
Pollsters also found somewhat more shaky support among DeSantis supporters than among those for Ramaswamy. Almost half of Ramaswamy backers said they will definitely vote for him, while only a third of DeSantis supporters said the same.
Meanwhile, more than 80 percent of Trump supporters said they will definitely vote for the former president.
DeSantis, Ramaswamy and several other GOP candidates, none of whom are likely to win the primary, will duke it out next week during the first Republican primary debate.
Trump, meanwhile, is skipping out for an interview with Tucker Carlson.
