Donald Trump has overtaken Ted Cruz in Iowa and maintains his lead in New Hampshire.
According to a new Fox News poll, 34% of Iowa caucus-goers have chose Trump as their first choice candidate. This is an 11-point bump up from a poll conducted earlier this month, while Cruz dropped 4 points giving him 23%. Marco Rubio comes in third with 12%, a 3-point decline from the previous poll. About a third of those polled say that they could change their minds between now and the primary, just over a week away, while 63% claim to be steadfast in their decision. When asked who would be their second choice, 14% chose Trump, 22% chose Cruz, and 15% chose Rubio.
Voters were also asked who they would pick if Trump weren’t an option. Cruz came in first place with 36% while support for Rubio only went up to 17%. When asked the same question, but under the condition that Cruz is excluded from the primary, Trump gets 43% of the vote while Rubio remains at 17%.
Though Trump is the clear frontrunner in Iowa, when voters were asked who they’d refuse to vote for against a Democratic candidate, he received the most votes with 20%. Jeb Bush followed at 14%, and Cruz received 11%.
Trump is also the first choice in New Hampshire with 31%, down 2 points from the previous poll. Cruz is again in second place with 14%, up 2 points, and Rubio is just below him with 13%. Ohio governor John Kasich, who received just 2% support in Iowa, is a much more appealing candidate to New Hampshire voters, coming in fourth place with 9%.
Without Trump in the race, Cruz’s numbers go up to 24%; without Cruz in the race, Trump’s numbers go up to 36%.
Again, when asked who they’d refuse to give their vote to, Trump led the pack with 26%. Bush again came in second with 15%, and Cruz followed at 14%.