In a 2016 matchup, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would top the entire Republican field in Florida, even in a state where two Republicans would have home field advantage.
In a Quinnipiac poll out Friday, known commodities trumped newcomers.
Clinton has the overwhelming support of her party in Florida, with 64% of Democrats in the state saying they’d vote for her. Biden is a far-off second, earning just 9% of his party ‘s votes in the Sunshine state.
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush leads the Republican field, scoring 25% of Republican primary votes in the state that famously decided his younger brother’s presidential election. Clinton would beat the older Bush in a match up, but her win margin is the smallest of any match up in the poll—49 to 43%.
Another top contender is the state’s Republican Sen. Marco Rubio, who earns 16% of Republican votes in the state that elected him four years ago. Clinton trumps him, 51-41%.
Gov. Chris Christie’s “Bridgegate” scandal has hurt him in the Sunshine state. Where 45% of voters thought the governor would make a good president in November, and 35% did not, 45% of voters now think the governor would not make a good president, with just 35% supporting him.
In that time, top Christie aides were found to have orchestrated a massive traffic jam as possible political retribution. Federal and state authorities are now investigating, and the formerly popular governor has seen his approval ratings eroded as Democrats and Independents jump ship from his team.
None of the candidates in the poll have announced they’ll run for office, though they are widely considered viable candidates.
Potential 2016 match ups aside, President Barack Obama’s numbers are also creeping up: he still has a negative approval rating, but it’s up from November’s 40-57% approval rating. Now, he has a 42-53% approval rating.
The poll surveyed 1,565 registered voters; the margin of error is 2.5 percentage points, though higher amongst the party-centric questions.
Jane Timm