CONCORD, N.H. – Daniel Comeau isn’t necessarily a fan of former President Donald Trump. But when it comes to casting a ballot in the Republican presidential primary next year, the New Hampshire landlord will be hard-pressed to vote for any other candidate.
“There’s nobody that’s even close,” Comeau, who supported the celebrity businessman-turned-president in the 2016 and 2020 elections, told USA TODAY.
He’s far from alone.
Look at any Republican presidential primary poll and it’s clear that Trump is soaring far above other 2024 hopefuls. The ex-president is not only clocking close to 50% support − he’s also registering the most loyal supporters of any GOP contender.
A recent Suffolk University/Boston Globe/USA TODAY survey of voters in New Hampshire, the first primary state, found that nearly 85% of the former president’s supporters have their minds made up. Comeau is among the mere 15% who say they haven’t yet fully committed.
And like many in that group, there’s little − other than Trump somehow not appearing on the ballot − that will actually change his mind before January.
Trump swaggers like incumbent
Republican leaders have largely brushed off Trump’s dominant lead in the primaries, attributing his sky-high numbers to the former president’s notoriety rather than to actual voter sentiment.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, running a distant second in polls, chalked Trump’s performance up to “100% name ID” during an October appearance on CNN.
