Donald Trump finally has some competition. Another Washington outsider, former neurosurgeon Ben Carson, is gaining steam in the race for the GOP presidential nomination, a new poll from Monmouth University finds.
In a survey of 405 likely Iowa Republican caucusgoers, Carson tied Trump at the top with 23 percent. The next closest competitors were Carly Fiorina (another candidate who has never held elected office), who captured 10 percent of the vote, and Ted Cruz, who earned 9 percent. Full poll results can be found here.
Trump and Carson’s successes in the Iowa poll is indicative of voters’ desire to support candidates who aren't chummy with the GOP establishment. In the same survey, a sizable majority of Iowa caucus voters, 66 percent, said they want a government outsider as president.
Carson has a few key advantages over Trump in this latest poll. While the businessman currently has a 52 percent favorable rating, Carson has a striking 81 percent favorable, and just 6 percent unfavorable. Additionally, Carson leads among evangelical voters and “very conservative” voters. Trump, however, leads among Tea Party supporters and men.
Carson has been polling at No. 2 for quite some time, yet often had a double-digit deficit to overcome to catch up with the Donald. That makes his current momentum swing all the more impressive.
