Just 21% of Floridians approve of Matt Gaetz post-McCarthy ouster: poll

It’s no secret that Rep. Matt Gaetz is far from the most popular man in Congress, but a new poll shows that Floridians aren’t super fond of him either.

Gaetz (R-Fla.), who is rumored to be eyeing a run for governor in 2026, has the approval of just 21% of Sunshine State voters while 57% disapprove, per a Florida Atlantic University Mainstreet PolCom Lab survey.

Of the remainder, 8% of voters had a neutral opinion of him and 14% said they weren’t sure how they felt.

The hard-right rep was thrust into the national spotlight last month after he successfully engineered the removal of Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) as House speaker.

Gaetz and seven other Republicans banded together with a solid bloc of 208 Democrats to oust McCarthy, who became the first House speaker to be removed by a vote of his colleagues.

Back home in his district, Matt Gaetz has been unbeatable since he ascended to Congress in 2017.AFP via Getty Images

The Floridian claims the gambit was motivated by frustration over a stopgap measure taken up by McCarthy in late September to avert a partial government shutdown, as well as other alleged broken promises.

McCarthy claims the revolt was part of a personal vendetta and alleged that Gaetz was livid that McCarthy refused to interfere in an ethics probe, something the Florida Republican denies.

The poll sampled 946 voters between Oct. 27-Nov. 11 with a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3.2 percentage points.

Speaker Mike Johnson brought forward a stopgap to avert a government shutdown similar to the one Kevin McCarthy brought up before he was ousted.Annabelle Gordon – CNP / MEGA

Since 2017, Gaetz has had a lock on the seat representing Florida’s 1st Congressional District, winning re-election by 35 percentage points last year.

Outside Geatz’s Panhandle perch, sentiment toward him is much less favorable — even among GOP voters.

Some 36.6% of Republicans approve of Gaetz statewide, compared to 36.3% who disapprove.

Kevin McCarthy wants Matt Gaetz to get punished for his deeds.ZUMAPRESS.com

When Republicans were asked about the removal of McCarthy as speaker, just 42% approved, 35% opposed and the remainder said they didn’t know.

Among Democrats, 82.9% disapprove of Gaetz, while among independents, 53.8% disapprove while 21.1% approve of his job performance, per the poll.

There has been buzz about Matt Gaetz running for governor. CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Despite reports and speculation that Gaetz has his eye on the governor’s mansion, he has denied or downplayed a potential run.

Some of his ardent critics in Congress, such as McCarthy himself, have called for him to be punished for dethroning the former speaker.