Democrat Andrew Gillum has opened up a big lead in the Florida governor race


Andrew Gillum is on track to become Florida's next governor.
A Quinnipiac University poll released Wednesday shows that the Tallahassee mayor, who unexpectedly won the state's Democratic gubernatorial primary last month, is 9 points ahead of Republican challenger Rep. Ron DeSantis. Support for the candidates is pretty staunchly divided along party lines, but independents are strongly in Gillum's favor, 56 percent to DeSantis' 40 percent.
Gillum, a progressive Democrat with Sen. Bernie Sanders' (I-Vt.) endorsement, was far from a shoo-in to win the Democratic primary last month. Yet since his win, Gillum has pulled ahead of the President Trump-backed DeSantis. A Quinnipiac poll released Sept. 4 put Gillum 3 points ahead of DeSantis, and an NBC News/Marist poll out Tuesday had him 5 points up among likely voters.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Wednesday's Quinnipiac poll shows that 54 percent of likely voters would opt for Gillum, while 45 percent prefer DeSantis. Gillum is also looking more positive to voters overall, drawing in a 55 percent favorability rating to DeSantis' 42 percent. Of those likely voters, 94 percent say they're decided on their vote.
Those results aren't as good as DeSantis' camp should expect, seeing as he's far outspent Gillum on TV ads, a Quinnipiac poll director says. Gillum's pay-less approach proved similarly successful during the Democratic primary.
Quinnipiac surveyed 888 likely voters by landlines or cellphone from Sept. 20-24 with a 4-point margin of error. See more results here.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
Film reviews: The Phoenician Scheme, Bring Her Back, and Jane Austen Wrecked My Life
Feature A despised mogul seeks a fresh triumph, orphaned siblings land with a nightmare foster mother, and a Jane fan finds herself in a love triangle
-
Music reviews: Tune-Yards and PinkPantheress
Feature "Better Dreaming" and "Fancy That"
-
Withdrawing 529 plan funds for college? Here's what to know.
the explainer Maximize the amount you have stashed away for your education
-
'The answer isn't to shake faith in the dollar'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Elon Musk slams Trump's 'pork-filled' signature bill
speed read 'Shame on those who voted for it: you know you did wrong,' Musk posted on X
-
Depleted FEMA struggling as hurricane season begins
speed read FEMA has lost a third of its workforce amid DOGE cuts enforced by President Donald Trump
-
White House tackles fake citations in MAHA report
speed read A federal government public health report spearheaded by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was rife with false citations
-
Judge blocks push to bar Harvard foreign students
speed read Judge Allison Burroughs sided with Harvard against the Trump administration's attempt to block the admittance of international students
-
Trump's trade war whipsawed by court rulings
Speed Read A series of court rulings over Trump's tariffs renders the future of US trade policy uncertain
-
Elon Musk departs Trump administration
speed read The former DOGE head says he is ending his government work to spend more time on his companies
-
Trump taps ex-personal lawyer for appeals court
speed read The president has nominated Emil Bove, his former criminal defense lawyer, to be a federal judge