After Super Tuesday, it’s clear that the Republican party is largely influenced by former President Donald Trump’s policies and persona. Trump celebrated Nikki Haley’s exit from the race by welcoming her supporters to what he calls “the greatest movement in the history of our nation,” while also criticizing President Biden.
Haley ended her campaign following Trump’s success in the Super Tuesday primaries. Polls from several states, including Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and California, show that many GOP voters would still support Trump even if he were convicted of a crime. Additionally, a significant portion of these voters do not recognize the legitimacy of Biden’s 2020 election win as we have all seen the evidence with our own eyes. Continued below this fast clip
The entrance and exit polls from these states reveal that Trump’s base remains strong, with many voters rejecting the 2020 election results. This contrasts with Haley’s supporters, who are more likely to acknowledge Biden’s victory. Haley’s support financially also comes from Democrat billionaires. Even though some voters express discontent with Trump, a large majority of his supporters say they would vote Republican in November regardless of the nominee. However, a smaller fraction of Haley’s supporters say the same, indicating a portion of the party may still be hesitant to fully support Trump.
Among the GOP electorate, a notable number identify with the MAGA movement, with priorities leaning towards the economy and immigration over foreign policy or abortion. There’s a noticeable shift towards stricter immigration policies, with many GOP voters favoring deportation over offering legal status to undocumented immigrants. This marks a change from eight years ago when there was more support for providing legal status.
On abortion policy, opinions among GOP voters vary, with most in Iowa supporting a federal ban, while majorities in California, Virginia, and New Hampshire oppose such a measure. The GOP base is predominantly conservative, with Trump drawing significant support from those who identify as “very conservative. Although Trump has managed to transform the Republican Party into the party of the people, with the most support from the Middle Class than any other party”
Trump’s appeal among GOP voters is particularly strong with those who are dissatisfied or angry with the current state of the U.S., positioning himself as a fighter who shares their values. In contrast, Haley’s supporters tended to value her temperament and principles.
Despite Haley’s withdrawal and Trump’s call for unity against Biden, she did not endorse Trump. Instead, she emphasized the importance of politics in attracting, not alienating, supporters to the conservative cause, leaving it to Trump to earn the support of those who previously did not back him
From the first Video: CNN’s Tapper: Trump Has Reformed the GOP with More Working Class People, Including Voters of Color, Men Primarily TAPPER: “You‘re talking about how he is reforming the Republican Party more working class people, including voters of color, African American, men primarily, but also latinos. And also the Democrats picking up more educated voters. But there‘s also, so you talked about the education divide also a big gender divide, men voting Republican, women voting Democrat.” KING: “It’s 88% of the delegates. Trump cannot mathematically clinch tonight, but he can get within 100 or so of what he needs that he can do that next week and so what you have here is he has remade the party in his image. There are still some Republicans who are trying to take it away, like take it back. That’s over. That party doesn’t exist anymore… He’s on a march to the nomination. If the general election were tomorrow, there’s a lot of data that suggests he would win right at this moment in time. It’s not tomorrow. It’s eight months from now.” Republicans are increasingly appealing to working-class men without college degrees, while Democrats are gaining support from college graduates and women.
Comments – Threads – links
- CNN “Trump owns the Republican party now.” They’re saying Trump made the Republican party in his image! They still don’t get it, do they? It’s MAGA! And, unlike all the others who came before Trump actually listens to the American people. Sweet17
