For the first time in months there is a new front runner in the Republican race to presidency. But the former Florida governor, who is a practicing Catholic, didn’t seize on the Pope’s comments Thursday to criticize Trump. While Cruz and Rubio have vied for the second-place slot, most recent polls show Cruz establishing a small but consistent lead.
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Trump had 40 percent support in the poll conducted from Saturday to Wednesday, compared with 17 percent for Cruz, 11 percent for Rubio, 10 percent for retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, and 8 percent for Bush. The political ground could certainly be shifting, although a similarly timed poll that included pre-debate responses showed Trump with a whopping 20-point lead over any of his rivals.
“When you see a number this different, it means you might be right on top of a shift in the campaign”.
The 2016 Republican presidential candidates are traveling across SC in a last-minute push for votes before Saturday’s First in the South primary. Both Cruz and Rubio have dropped in MI with Kasich’s improving fortunes.
Hell, Rubio is now seen as a likely third-place finisher in SC – behind Trump and Cruz – and laurels are virtually being thrown at his feet. On the contrary, Trump had slightly enhanced his lead over the rest of the GOP field.
These findings are more consistent with the NBC/WSJ poll, which also surveyed opinions on the Supreme Court, and found that 43% support Obama nominating the next justice with 42% opposing him. Ted Cruz gets 19 percent to Marco Rubio’s 15 percent.
A new poll shows Donald Trump falling behind Ted Cruz.
“I like Donald…. His policy positions have not made any sense”, Cruz said. For example, the data wonks over at FiveThirtyEight still give Trump a 78% chance of winning the South Carolina Republican primary. The survey interviewed 602 Republicans with a margin of error of 4 percent and 563 Democrats with a margin of 4.1 percent.
Trump has repeatedly advocated enhanced interrogation techniques for foreign prisoners, and he said again Wednesday he would “absolutely” allow waterboarding, which simulates the feeling of drowning.
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Meanwhile, the two head-to-head Democratic candidates, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, are vying for the support of Nevada’s minorities ahead of the caucus contest there this weekend. But even given Haley’s high popularity with South Carolina Republicans (81% in December), do “establishment” endorsements matter anymore?
