Poll: Ron DeSantis approval rating sags as COVID-19 rages
Scott Powers
August 4, 20215min

The latest surge of COVID-19 might be catching up with Gov. Ron DeSantis.

A new poll from St. Pete Polls finds the Governor�s approval rating has
sagged considerably, with more Floridians now saying they do not approve
of the job DeSantis is doing than those who say they approve.

The poll, which was conducted Monday and Tuesday among 3,952 likely
Florida voters through an automated phone polling system, also found
DeSantis falling behind one Democratic rival for the 2022 gubernatorial
election, trailing Democratic U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist. DeSantis has a
slight lead on Democratic Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried in
the poll.

The poll also shows Floridians are not in agreement with DeSantis when it
comes to his opposition to mask mandates for school children.

DeSantis drew just 44% of Florida voters saying they approve of the job he
is doing, while 49% said they do not approve of his job performance. The
rest were unsure.

That is a huge swing from the job approval numbers DeSantis received in a
Florida Chamber of Commerce poll in May. That survey gave him a 55%
approval for his job performance, with 40% not approving.

In the St. Pete Polls survey, DeSantis nearly broke even among partisan
voters, with Republicans not quite overcoming the Democrats� opinions.

For Democrats, 74% said they do not approve of his job performance and 19%
said they do. For Republicans, 71% said they approve, while 22% said they
do not.

Independent voters broke against him, with 39% saying they approve of his
job performance, and 51% saying they do not approve.

DeSantis received positive marks from White, non-Hispanic voters, with 51%
approving and 43% not approving. But he was underwater among Hispanic
voters, among Asian or Pacific Islander voters, and especially among Black
voters.

His job performance drew negative results among both men, a 44% to 49%
split; and women, with a 44% to 48% split.

He also is not doing well within any age category except voters age 70 or
older. The youngest set, those ages 18-29, posted 39% approval and 52%
disapproval. The next youngest, those age 30-49, were not far off, with
40% approving and 51% disapproving. Those over 70 showed 49% approval,
still not a majority, but more than the 43% who said no, they do not
approve.

DeSantis still is viewed favorably in North Florida markets from Pensacola
to Jacksonville, and is holding his own in Tampa and Fort Myers. Panama
City voters gave him 71% approval against 20% disapproval. Tampa barely
broke his way, with 48% saying they approve and 46% saying they don�t.

But the Governor is underwater in Orlando, Gainesville, West Palm Beach
and Miami. In Orlando, 44% said they approve of his job performance, while
48% said they do not. In Miami, just 31% of voters said they approve,
while 61% said they do not.

The St. Pete Polls survey also gives President Joe Biden a slight positive
nod, with Florida voters favoring him at 49%, as 46% gave the President
poor marks.

The survey�s unusually large sample size gives it a margin of error of
1.6%, meaning the key findings are falling outside the margin.

St. Pete Polls are aggregated by two of the nation�s leading polling
watchdogs, Real Clear Politics and Five Thirty Eight.