Gov. Ron DeSantis (FL-R), for the second time, won the Colorado Conservative Summit straw poll for 2024 presidential candidates on Saturday, beating out former President Donald Trump and other potential contenders.
DeSantis secured 71% approval from summit attendees, with Donald Trump closely following at 67% approval.
The poll was organized by the Colorado Christian University’s Centennial Institute, a conservative think tank that has hosted its marquee Western Conservative Summit in Colorado since 2010.
DeSantis won the 2024 straw poll last year at the Western Conservative Summit, but with a much smaller margin. DeSantis received 74% approval to Trump’s 71% in 2021.
According to Fox News, the 2022 audience supported Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, at 29%, and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson at 24%. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Trump’s press secretary and current GOP nominee for Arkansas governor who spoke at the event Saturday, claimed the fourth-place spot with 18% support.
DeSantis has not declared his candidacy for 2024, and Trump has strongly hinted numerous times that he plans to run for the GOP nomination.
