A fourth poll put retired pediatric neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson on top in Iowa — this time by 12 points.
The Loras College Poll showed Carson leading the still-crowded Republican pack in Iowa at 30.6 percent. Real estate mogul Donald Trump polled at 18.6 percent.
Sen. Marco Rubio (FL) was the only other candidate to poll in double digits at 10 percent.
When caucusgoers were asked to pick a second choice, “undecided” polled at 22 percent while Carson remained the top name for second choice at 19 percent.
“One hundred days is a long time in caucus politics, especially for someone without much campaign experience,” said Christopher Budzisz, the director of the Loras College Poll. “Carson need only look to the slip in the polls by Donald Trump for a reminder of this.”
There are 97 days until the Iowa Republican caucus and the next Republican debate is Wednesday in Boulder, Col., at 8 p.m. EST on CNBC.
The poll was conducted among 1,000 likely caucus voters (500 likely Republicans and 500 likely Democrats) from Oct. 19 to 22 by live calls via cell phone and landline. The margin of error was plus or minus 4.4 percent.
