Latest poll predicts Rick Scott will trounce Democratic opponent by 15 points

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A poll released Friday by the Florida Chamber of Commerce suggested Florida Republican Sen. Rick Scott leads his Democratic challenger, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, by 15 points.

Mucarsel-Powell is a former U.S. representative for Florida. She garnered 39% support in the poll to Scott’s 54%. This leaves 7% of voters who have not chosen either.

Scott, former governor of Florida and senator since 2018, enters his reelection bid off the heels of a nail-biter 2018 race, where he won by just 10,033 votes, or 0.12%.

The state has swung hard for Republicans since then, with the GOP winning in 2022 by around 20 points. The state’s GOP also leads Democrats by over 900,000 voters, an unprecedented margin.

Florida Chamber said that Scott has strong support among Hispanics at 66%. It also handed him 93% GOP support – both tallies helping bolster his lead over the Democrat.

Scott’s 15 point lead is in line with a poll from April that handed him a 16 point lead. Another handed Scott a lesser, but still strong, 7 point lead.

President Joe Biden has tapped into the Senate race this year as Democrats hope for more enthusiasm thanks to a pro-abortion ballot initiative being allowed onto the ballot, protecting the practice in the Florida Constitution up to around 20 weeks with the definition of “viability.”

The poll released Friday was conducted April 28 to May 7 by Cherry Communications among 609 likely voters. The partisan breakdown is 36.6% Democratic, 42% Republican and 21.3% “Others.”