The former president of the United States Donald Trump expand it head Start of on his opponents for the qualifiers for the presidential anointing of Republican Party ahead of the 2024 election despite facing criminal charges in New York, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released Monday.

About 48% of self-identified Republicans say they want Trump to be their party’s presidential nominee–from 44% which was the corresponding percentage in a poll conducted between March 14-20.

Nearly 19 percent support his biggest challenger, Florida Gov. Ron DeSandis, up from 30 percent last month.

Other potential Trump opponents are securing single-digit approval ratings from pollsters.

The online poll was conducted from March 31 to April 3 after news broke that Trump had been indicted following an investigation into payments made to porn actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 US presidential election.

Trump is the first US president to be criminally prosecuted. He is expected to appear in a Manhattan court todaywhere he will plead not guilty to the charges he faces.

Desandes has come under fire in recent weeks for a statement he made on March 13 that it was not in the vital national interest of the US to “engage the country further in a territorial dispute between Ukraine and Russia.”

Trump has stepped up his attacks on Desandes, who has not formally announced his candidacy but is expected to.

About 71% of Americans, including 58% of Republicans, believe Trump bought Stormy Daniels’ silence before the 2016 presidential election. The former president himself maintains his innocence and denies having an affair with her, although he has admit that he paid her.

At the same time, 51% of respondents, including 80% of Republicans, considered the accusations against Trump to be politically motivated.

These percentages are almost the same as last month’s.

The poll polled 706 American adults.