"We have these massive crowds,” Donald Trump boasted Wednesday night. | Getty Trump: ‘I don’t know why we’re not leading by a lot’

Donald Trump said he’s puzzled as to why he’s not leading Hillary Clinton by large margins at a rally Wednesday night, making no mention of the controversies that have mired his campaign all week.

Speaking to a large crowd at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena in Florida, Trump boasted about the turnout at his events, citing it as an indicator of his support.


“We go to Oklahoma, we had 25,000 people. We had 21,000 people in Dallas. We had 35,000 people in Mobile, Alabama. We have these massive crowds,” the Republican nominee said. “You’ve got thousands of people outside trying to get in [today], and this is one hell of a big stadium.”

Trump then mocked the Democratic nominee’s use of scripted speeches, marveling at his own improvisational style even in large venues.

“Do you ever see Hillary Clinton? If she speaks in front of 24 people she’s got the teleprompter,” he jested. “If she came here tomorrow — so look at this place, packed, thousands outside, we actually put screens outside — so, Hillary, if she came here, if she had 500 people I’d be surprised.”

Trump then questioned how the attendance at his rallies hasn’t been reflected in the polls.

“I hear we’re leading Florida by a bit,” he said. “I don’t know why we’re not leading by a lot. Maybe crowds don’t make the difference.”

A Fox News national poll published Tuesday showed Trump trailing Clinton by 10 percentage points, 49 percent to 39 percent -- though he fares somewhat better in state polls.

According to POLITICO's Battleground States polling average, Clinton leads him 43.5 percent to 39.1 percent in an average of polls in 11 swing states. In Florida, she leads more narrowly in the average of recent state polls, 43.6 percent to 41.8 percent.