In Iowa, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker remains atop the pack of the vast GOP field, but his lead is steadily slipping, according to a new
Quinnipiac University poll of likely Republican caucus participants in the Hawkeye State.
In a February poll, 25 percent of Iowa’s likely Republican caucus-goers supported Walker. In May, that figure dropped to 21 percent, and in the most recent poll, Walker was at 18 percent.
Following Walker are Donald Trump and Ben Carson, each with 10 percent support; Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz with 9 percent; former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush with 8 percent; and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio with 7 percent. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has 5 percent.
No other candidate is above 4 percent and 5 percent of respondents are undecided. At 1 percent, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who formally announced his candidacy on Tuesday, is in 15th place.
Walker, who spent part of his youth in Iowa when his father served as pastor at a Baptist church, is the candidate to beat in Iowa, according to
Politico.
"With his Iowa roots, plainspoken style and familiarity as the governor of the next state over, Walker is generating grass-roots buzz, lofty expectations and a lead in the polls that has Iowa power brokers and political operatives pointing to him as the early favorite in the first-in-the-nation caucuses next February," according to a June 7 Politico story.
Other items of note in the Quinnipiac poll:
- A brash billionaire, Trump received one in 10 votes, something that has party leaders concerned. "They see him as a potentially disruptive force," said the poll’s assistant director, Peter A. Brown.
- Likely GOP caucus participants in Iowa believe, by a margin of 69-20 percent, that if elected president, Jeb Bush would follow different policies than his brother.
- Bush is honest and trustworthy (60-28 percent) the participants said, and has strong leadership qualities and cares about their needs and problems (55-35 percent).
- Trump and Bush topped the "no way" list, with 28 percent and 24 percent, respectively, of caucus-goers who said they would not support certain candidates.
- Carson, a retired neurosurgeon, is the next closest to Walker in favorability ratings in Iowa. Carson received a 63 percent rating; Walker 66 percent.
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