Poll: Rick Scott far more popular among Puerto Rican Florida voters than Donald Trump

A fascinating poll of Puerto Rican Floridian commissioned by Florida International University shows how well Gov. Rick Scott has separated himself from Donald Trump among one of the state's most coveted groups of voters.

More than seven in 10 of the 1,000 Puerto Ricans interviewed for the poll commissioned by Florida International University have a bad a very bad opinion of President Trump. By contast, more than 55 percent have a good or very good opinion of Gov. Scott — a whopping 82 percent among those who moved to Florida since 2017 when Hurricane Maria devastated the island.

Scott has repeatedly visited the island since Maria and aggressively courted Puerto Ricans in Florida. He is challenging Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, who has been sharply critical of the Trump administration's response to the disaster.

Nelson is considerably less popular among recent transplants to Florida, with 57 percent having a positive view of the Senator, lower than his Republican colleague, Sen. Marco Rubio, who was viewed positively by 61 percent.

The findings were presented Saturday at the Puerto Rican Alliance of Florida's Nuestro Futuro  Symposium 2018 organized in partnership with FIU and The Puerto Rican Leadership Council.

Other findings about Puerto Ricans living in Florida:

**61 percent live in the Orlando area, 22 percent in Tampa Bay, 11 percent Miami and 6 percent in the Fort Lauderdale area

**The most difficult challenges cited most frequently were not speaking English, 18 percent, and getting a job, 17 percent. More than one in four said they had not been able to find a job since moving to Florida.

**Forty-eight percent said it was difficult finding a job, and 38 percent said it wasn't.

**Three out of four are registered to vote in the U.S, and 57 fifty seven percent registered as a Democrat, 18 percent independent, 12 percent Republican and 13 percent declined to say or did not know.

**100 percent had heard of Trump, 76 percent had heard of Rubio, 69 percent had heard of Scott and 50 percent had heard of Nelson.

**Thirty-two percent expect to return to Puerto Rico, and 43 percent don't. Sixty

**Seventy-seven percent had family in Florida before moving here.

**Nearly twenty-three percent moved to Florida before 2011, nearly 28 percent from 2012 through 2014, nearly 24 percent in 2015 and 2016, and nearly 26 percent since 2017.