Five Republican candidates took the stage in Miami on Wednesday evening as front-runner Donald Trump stayed away, protecting his huge lead.
When JL Partners asked 544 viewers to rank the rivals out of 10 for their debate performance, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis came out on top.
He was followed by embattled entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy alongside former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, and then by Senator Tim Scott, with former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie receiving the lowest score.
Whether that’s enough for DeSantis to bring in Trump, who has a lead of up to 30 points in the primaries, is another matter.
Ron DeSantis – 6.6
When asked to rate the five candidates on stage Wednesday night, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (center) came out on top with an average score of 6.6 points.
The Florida governor needed a big night and performed best, according to viewers and a range of analysts. Whether or not it changes the overall trajectory of a Trump-dominated race is another matter.
But that night he stuck to his guns and was less distracted by mudslinging than others.
Kellyanne Conway, a pollster and former adviser to President Trump, said she wasn’t surprised when she heard DeSantis came out on top.
“I think it’s a reflection of the fact that DeSantis is so centered,” she said. “He had a better evening than the first two debates.”
In a head-to-head match with Haley, his rival for second place, he won comfortably, according to viewers. And his supporters will hope his performance will keep him going for more than two months before the Iowa caucuses in January.
Vivek Ramaswamy – 6.1
Biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy stuck to his trusted strategy: keep an eye on everyone and insert yourself into every conversation going on.
Ramaswamy Once again, Ramaswamy beat up everyone before him and turned his fire on his rivals, not to mention the organizers of the debate and its moderators by the Republican National Committee.
“Think about who is moderating this debate,” he said in his opening salvo. “This must be Tucker Carlson, Joe Rogan and Elon Musk
“We would have ten times as many viewers.”
After a rollicking first debate that catapulted him into voters’ minds, subsequent clashes have led to diminishing returns.
He is labeled as unpleasant by analysts. And while he continues to do well in DailyMail.com surveys, pollster James Johnson said he would likely win the support of Trump loyalists who chose him because their man was not on stage.
His overall poll numbers are anemic.
Nikki Haley – 6.1
DeSantis defeated Haley out of sight Wednesday night in the third Republican presidential debate, according to an exclusive DailyMail.com poll of viewers.
Haley had one of the most viral moments of the night, but it may have undermined her solid answers to the big foreign policy questions.
For example, when asked what she would say to the Israeli prime minister in the aftermath of the Hamas attack that killed 1,400 people, she was able to casually mention that she had already spoken to Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The first thing I said to him when it happened was ‘kill them, kill them,'” she said.
But her evening may be most remembered for her visceral response to Ramaswamy when he brought up her daughter’s use of TikTok when they fell out over the Chinese-owned social media app.
“Leave my daughter out of your voice,” she said, before muttering, “You’re just scum.”
That emotional moment may have cost her viewers, Conway said.
“For women in leadership, there is a lot of room for passion,” she said, “but very little room for emotion.
Tim Scott – 5.5
Tim Scott has revealed that the mystery woman he brought on stage at the end of the debate was his girlfriend Mindy Noce, a design and renovation manager
Much of the debate focused on foreign policy, following the terrorist attack on Israel. It gave Scott a chance to show voters a different side of his campaign that focused on domestic issues.
But he also struck a familiar tone as he tried to offer voters a more optimistic vision of America.
Scott frequently referred to the Bible and appealed to the Christian faith of many Republican primary voters, echoing his campaign themes and his particular focus on Iowa, where white evangelical voters are an influential bloc.
And maybe he stole the show at the end. He caused a wave of social media posts when he appeared arm-in-arm with a long-haired blonde woman who smiled broadly as they posed for photos.
After weeks of questions, he finally introduced the world to his girlfriend, Mindy Noce.
Chris Christie – 4.8
Chris Christie talks to Scott and his mother Frances after the third debate
As always, the former governor of New Jersey was the candidate most likely to criticize Trump.
“Anyone who is going to spend the next year and a half of their life focusing on keeping themselves out of prison and the courtrooms cannot lead this party or this country, and that needs to be said clearly,” he said early on, when candidates were being nominated invited. wondered why they would be a better president than Trump.
Christie’s unique selling point is that he is willing to speak openly about his disdain for Trump.
But it condemns him to low ratings, while the former president remains the biggest force in the Republican Party.