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Poll: Half of Florida Voters Think Rubio Planning 2020 Presidential Bid

But he has a solid 10-point lead over Democrat Rep. Patrick Murphy

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has a large lead over Democratic Rep. Patrick Murphy in his race for re-election. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has a large lead over Democratic Rep. Patrick Murphy in his race for re-election. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call file photo)

Nearly half of likely Florida voters say incumbent Republican Sen. Marco Rubio‘s campaign is more about setting up another presidential bid in 2020 than serving the state, according to a new poll.

Rubio holds a 10-point lead over Democratic challenger Rep. Patrick Murphy, a Bloomberg poll released Wednesday found. The survey showed Rubio leading among almost all demographics, with Murphy only beating the incumbent in the Miami area and among nonwhite voters. The two are tied among likely Hispanic voters.

On the question of whether Rubio was looking more at 2020 than another term in the Senate, 49 percent of those polled said it was the former while 27 percent said it was more about serving Florida. Twenty-four percent said they weren’t sure. Even among those supporting Rubio, 28 percent said it was about 2020.

In the presidential race, Republican Donald Trump holds a 2-point edge over Democrat Hillary Clinton, 45 percent to 43 percent. Libertarian Gary Johnson and the Green Party’s Jill Stein trailed with 4 and 2 percent respectively. Among independents, Trump also has a slim 2-point advantage 43 to 41 percent. But both leads were within the poll’s 3.2-point margin of error.

“This race may come down to the independent vote,” said pollster J. Ann Selzer, who oversaw the survey. “Right now, they tilt for Trump. By a narrow margin, they opted for Obama over Romney in 2012.”

RealClearPolitics average of polls from Oct. 20-24 has Clinton up by just under 2 points in a four-way race in Florida. 

The poll, conducted by Selzer & Co., surveyed 953 likely voters or people who have already voted in Florida from Oct. 21 through Oct. 24 by landline and cellphone. 

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