Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is in a virtual tie with Donald Trump in the latest poll out of Iowa.
Trump still leads the way with 25 percent, and was able to climb 5 points from a late October poll. But Cruz is right behind Trump with 23 percent, more than double the 10 percent he had just four weeks ago, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll released Tuesday.
Support for neurosurgeon Ben Carson has dropped sharply. Carson had 28 percent in the last poll, but now has 18 percent. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio didn’t see any change in support, and still has 13 percent.
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush continues to falter, going from 5 percent in October to 4 percent now. Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul follows Rubio at 5 percent and Carly Fiorina garners 3 percent. No other candidate tops 2 percent, while 2 percent are undecided.
“Last month, we said it was Dr. Ben Carson’s turn in the spotlight. Today, the spotlight turns to Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. The Iowa Republican Caucus has become a two-tiered contest: Businessman Donald Trump and neurosurgeon Ben Carson lead on the outsider track, and Sens. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio lead among party insiders,” Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University poll, said in a statement.
Brown did note that winning Iowa does not necessarily mean success in other states. He noted that former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee won the 2008 caucus and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum won in 2012, “yet both were quickly gone from those nomination fights as the primary calendar moved to larger states,” he said.
The poll of 600 likely GOP caucus-goers was conducted Nov. 16-22 with a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
