Following Hurricane Ian, Fla., Republicans Lead Democrats In Key Races In General Election

Florida Phoenix

October 3, 2022

Several days following the devastation from Hurricane Ian, two polls for key races in the general election in Florida are showing different results, with mostly Republicans in the lead.

According to a poll released Monday by Spectrum News and Siena College, Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio has a seven-point advantage over his Democratic opponent U.S. Rep. Val Demings, with 49 percent of those surveyed in favor of Rubio and 41 percent for Demings.

That poll was conducted by 669 likely Florida voters from September 18-25, prior to the massive storm that resulted in deaths and damages. For the gubernatorial race in 2022, Gov. Ron DeSantis leads Democrat Charlie Crist, with 49 percent in favor of DeSantis and 41 percent in favor of Crist.

Don Levy, Siena College Research Institute’s Director, said in a written statement:

“Additionally, DeSantis has a solid 50-43% favorability rating, including being viewed favorably by a majority of independents, compared to Crist’s 34-39% favorability rating, with more than a quarter of the electorate not having an opinion about him including 20% of Democrats.”

However, a separate poll conducted by progressive groups shows Demings and Rubio tied. Demings is a former Orlando police chief and Rubio is a former Florida House Speaker seeking a third term in the Senate.

The poll – conducted by Progress Florida and Florida Watch – also shows DeSantis leading Crist by only one point, 47 percent in favor of DeSantis and 46 percent in favor of Crist. That poll surveyed about 2,860 voters across the state from September 22-27, according to a press release.

Meanwhile, tt about 5 p.m. Monday, Demings’ campaign urged voters to make contributions, following a “massive setback,” though she had been tied in recent polls. “Right now, the GOP is beginning to outspend me in key areas of Florida, and I need more resources to fight back against their deceitful attack ads and misinformation to pull ahead in this race.”

The campaign also stated that ” we can still turn this around.”

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