A new poll of Iowa Republicans shows Donald Trump and Ben Carson still perched atop the field, but Texas Sen. Ted Cruz has gained ground and moved into third place.
The Public Policy Polling survey also shows Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal inching past former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Carly Fiorina.
Trump received the support of 22 percent of Republicans surveyed, followed by Carson at 21 percent, Cruz at 14 percent, Rubio at 10 percent, and Jindal and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee tied at 6 percent. Bush and Fiorina each polled at 5 percent.
Cruz is the biggest gainer since last month’s PPP survey, and now leads the GOP field among self-identified Tea Party and “very conservative” voters.
“Ted Cruz seems to have gotten the biggest boost out of the last six weeks in Iowa,” said Dean Debnam, PPP president, in a statement. “He’s seeing the greatest improvement both in his support for the nomination and for his overall image in the state.”
PPP’s analysis of its data explains that Fiorina is “heading the wrong way,” Kasich is struggling, and “Jeb Bush is having a rough time in Iowa.” Bush’s communications director Tim Miller warned about the increasing likelihood of low poll numbers on Monday.
“FYI political press corps. Jeb’s going to have a few weeks of bad polls,” Miller tweeted. “Comebacks take time, we recognize and are prepared for that.”
Cruz’s rise in PPP’s latest survey of the Hawkeye State comes as GOP voters have begun losing interest in the televised debates. Approximately 62 percent of respondents said they watched the first presidential debate in August, 56 percent of respondents watched the second one in September, and 44 percent watched CNBC’s debate in October.
The lessening exposure does not appear to have damaged Trump or Carson. The retired neurosurgeon remains “easily the most popular of the Republican candidates in Iowa,” as 74 percent of respondents viewed him favorably and 13 percent viewed him unfavorably.
PPP surveyed 638 “usual Republican” voters from October 30th to November 1. The poll had a margin of error of 3.9 percentage points.
