Palm Beach, Florida - Former President Donald Trump has widened his gaping lead over Ron DeSantis and a crowded field of Republican primary contenders as the campaign edges closer toward the crucial early-voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire.

Even after he was indicted for a fourth time and skipped the first Republican debate, Trump is at 52%. It's a giant lead over the Florida governor, who scored 18% in the same poll.

Ex-Vice President and former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley each earned 7% in the survey.

Upstart Vivek Ramaswamy, who grabbed attention at the debate with a series of provocative jousts with rivals, clocked in at 6%, a big increase from the 1% he registered in a similar poll taken in June.

Trump's dominance is even more daunting to rivals because his popularity appears to be rising even as his legal woes pile up.

He increased his support from 47% over the summer. More than 80% of those Trump supporters say there is no chance they will abandon the former president and vote for someone else, meaning he has 43% of GOP support locked in.

An even bigger 63% majority of Republicans think Trump will be the nominee, regardless of whom they support.

The DeSantis campaign, on the other hand, appears to be locked in a downward spiral, with his support plunging from 26% in June.

A series of campaign reboots has failed to reverse the trend for DeSantis and his performance at the debate didn't light the race on fire either.

The poll of 784 GOP voters and those who lean Republican was taken days after the debate.

Another debate is set for later this month, but Trump has suggested that he will boycott that one too, citing his giant lead.

As Republican voters largely unite behind Trump, they are also shrugging off the significance of his indictments on charges tied to his plot to overturn the 2020 election.

Some 70% say the charges would not affect his fitness to serve as president and 61% believe the baseless claim that they are the result of political interference by federal prosecutors.