Texas Rep. Ron Paul has surged to second place in a new Iowa poll of likely Republican caucus goers, just one percent behind former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, the current front-runner.
Paul has consistently placed in the top tier of Republican presidential candidates in recent Iowa polls. With Iowans heading to vote in only three weeks, Gingrich holds a razor-thin 22–21 lead.
The poll, conducted by Public Policy Polling, found weakening support for Gingrich among self-identified tea partiers, and a dramatic rise in Paul’s favorability rating.
“There are a lot of parallels between Paul’s strength in Iowa and Barack Obama’s in 2008 — he’s doing well with new voters, young voters, and non-Republican voters,” said PPP in an explanation of its poll’s findings.
Paul has taken aim at Gingrich with an ad alleging “serial hypocrisy” for changing his position on a variety of issues, including health care and global warming. The ad also targeted him for accepting millions from Freddie Mac, and for calling a budget proposal from Wisconsin GOP Rep. Paul Ryan “right-wing social engineering.”
Gingrich’s favorability rating has declined 19 points among Iowans since last week.
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney placed third in the poll, at 16 percent. He was followed by Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann at 11 percent, Texas Gov. Rick Perry at 9 percent, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum at 8 percent and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman at 5 percent.
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it is the process. still amazed how the bum fucks of iowa got so important. wtf do you do in iowa?
Not really important… just “first.”
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does iowa usually matter? starting to get concerned that the wheels are comin off. bein a republican vote myself.
Here’s the results of the last Iowa Republican Caucus (2008):
2008 – Mike Huckabee (34%), Mitt Romney (25%), Fred Thompson (13%), John McCain (13%), Ron Paul (10%), Rudy Giuliani (4%), and Duncan Hunter (1%)
Notice anything? 😉
(that said, Zero won in the Dem Primary in 2008).
I think the Iowa vote on the GOP side is somewhat skewed to the evangelical. Don’t be surprised if Bachmann does well. As Mike Huckabee is perhaps one of the most execrable presidential candidates to come across since Richard Nixon, I don’t put a whole lot of faith in Iowan’s judgment.
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Well now that I Googled “execrable” it all makes sense. 🙂