Posted by The Taint on 9/21/2015 8:19:00 AM (view original):
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump after speaking at the Iowa Faith Donald Trump remains the front-runner for the Republican nomination for president — but two candidates have surged after last week's intense CNN debate.
Trump is slumping in a new CNN/ORC poll released Sunday. He leads the crowded field with 24% of the Republican vote, down eight points from a similar survey earlier in the month.
Meanwhile, former Hewlett Packard CEO Carly Fiorina and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) — whom many pundits identified as the two winners of the debate — have jumped a few spots. Fiorina has vaulted into second behind Trump, grabbing 15% of the vote. She had just 3% support in the CNN poll earlier this month.
Rubio is in fourth place with 11% of the Republican vote, also up from 3%. He's also behind retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who fell to third place amid Fiorina's rise. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) stands in fifth place, with 9% of the vote. He also had 9% in the last CNN poll.
Fiorina has risen from virtually nonexistent support to a top-tier candidate with strong performances in the first Republican "undercard" debate in August and in last Wednesday's CNN affair.
Fiorina repeatedly clashed with Trump at the CNN event, including over his recent comments that mocked her face. And she earned perhaps the biggest applause line of the night by advocating for defunding the Planned Parenthood organization.
Indeed, 52% of Republicans who watched the debate said Fiorina did the "best job," according to the CNN poll. She was far ahead of Rubio (14%) and Trump (11%). Meanwhile, 31% said Trump did the "worst job" in the debate, which led the Republican field.
1) Trump is STILL leading.
2) you forgot to post this from the same poll:
"Trump still stands out on the issues.
About 44% of likely GOP voters say they see Trump as the candidate who could best handle the economy -- well ahead of his nearest competitors: Fiorina at 11%, Rubio at 10% and Bush at 8%.
Trump also wins on immigration, with 47% saying he could best address the issue, ahead of second-place Rubio's 15% and Bush's 9%.
He even edges Rubio, 22% to 17%, on who could best handle foreign policy."