Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders now leads Hillary Clinton in the first caucus state of Iowa by 10 points, while opening up a commanding lead of 22 points in the first primary state of New Hampshire, according to a new poll out by YouGov/CBS News.
Sanders’ enthusiastic core of die-hard supporters, especially on the progressive left of the Democratic Party, have propelled him ahead of Clinton, and the enthusiasm of his supporters appears to be turning into a legitimate problem for Clinton.
In New Hampshire, 78 percent of Sanders’ supporters say they “enthusiastically support” him, while only 39 percent of Clintons’ supporters say the same of their chosen candidate. In Iowa, 63 percent of Sanders’ supporters say they support him with enthusiasm, while 49 percent of Clinton supporters say that about the former secretary of state.
Clinton’s fall in public standing does not appear to be related to the ongoing email scandal, at least among projected Democratic caucus and primary goers in Iowa and New Hampshire. Seventy-four percent in Iowa and 76 percent in New Hampshire said the scandal “doesn’t matter.”
Vice President Joe Biden was also featured in these polls but, still undeclared, he fared rather poorly: 9 percent support in New Hampshire, 10 percent support in Iowa.
Former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley scored 5 percent support in Iowa, with only 1 percent in New Hampshire, and Jim Webb, Lincoln Chafee were both either at 1 percent or 0 in both Iowa and New Hampshire, within the poll’s margin of error.
Looking ahead to states after Iowa and New Hampshire, South Carolina continues to be a problem for Bernie Sanders. Clinton leads there with 46 percent, Sanders with 23 percent, Biden at 22 percent, and Chafee, Webb, and O’Malley barely registering or not registering at all.
The numbers there belie Sanders’ acknowledged problem with garnering African-American support. He will need to enhance his support within that community if he intends to do better in the southern primary and caucus states, as detailed this week in The Washington Post.
