A poll released on Monday showed that real estate mogul Donald Trump had skyrocketed to a commanding lead nationally in the Republican presidential field prior to his criticism of Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) military career.
The latest Washington Post/ABC News poll found that Trump topped the crowded Republican field with 24 percent support among Republicans and Republican-leaning Independents.
While those numbers were the best of all Republican candidates, the poll showed support for him may have dropped following his disparaging comments about McCain’s time as a prisoner of war. McCain, a Navy veteran and longtime Republican senator, was a POW in Vietnam for five years.
Most of the telephone interviews took place before Trump’s comments were reported on Saturday, but according to the Washington Post, the decline in support was statistically significant. It’s unclear how much his criticism of McCain will negatively affect the Trump campaign.
The poll showed Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker had 13 percent support, following by Jeb Bush at 12 percent. The nearly dozen other candidates polled in the single digits.
The Washington Post/ABC News poll was conducted by Langer Research Associates with 1,002 people via landline and cellphone in English and Spanish from July 16 to 19. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent.
