Is Nikki Haley the clear Trump challenger?
- Poll: Haley climbs to 16% alongside Ron DeSantis ahead of GOP primary vote
- Former President Donald Trump still leads the party by a large margin
- Mike Pence ended his 2024 campaign, has not endorsed any candidate
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(NewsNation) — Support for former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has surged among Iowa Republicans as she ties for second place in a new Iowa poll.
Haley is neck-and-neck with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the race for the GOP nomination in the state, according to a recent poll, sparking discussions about whether she could become the primary content against former President Donald Trump.
Trump continues to dominate in state and national polls — he’s still the first choice of 43% of Iowa Republicans, according to a poll by NBC News and the Des Moines Register. However, the poll revealed Haley is emerging as his closest rival, climbing 10 points to 16% while sharing the second place with DeSantis.
However, the poll, conducted by Iowa pollster J. Ann Selzer, shows that Trump supporters are more enthusiastic and locked into their choice than Haley’s and Deasntis’ backers.
“This is a good poll for Donald Trump. For all the things that happened between the last poll and now, he’s still the dominant player in the field and his standing has, in fact, improved from August,” Selzer said.
Trump’s 27-point lead is up from NBC News and the Des Moines Register poll in August, where Trump was ahead of DeSantis by 23 points — 42% of 19% — and Haley was at 6%.
The poll was conducted before former Vice President Mike Pence ended his campaign Saturday. He has not yet thrown his support behind another candidate.
