Ted Cruz trumps The Donald to go ten points clear and TRIPLE support in just two months in new Iowa poll (but Trump blames 'biased' pollster)
- Cruz is backed by 31 per cent of Iowa Republicans to Trump's 21 per cent
- Des Monies Register and Bloomberg Politics asked 400 voters this month
- Texas senator hails numbers as Trump lashes out at 'biased' pollster
- Jump means Cruz has tripled his support in the state in just two months
- Comes after evangelical 'kingmaker' Bob Vander Plaats endorsed him
Ted Cruz has opened up a commanding ten-point lead over Donald Trump in Iowa according to a new poll released just seven weeks away from the nation's first Republican caucus there.
A poll of 400 likely Republican voters for Des Monies Register and Bloomberg Politics found Cruz riding high on 31 per cent support compared to Trump on 21 and Carson a distant third with 13.
The results, released on Saturday night, represent a huge 21 per cent jump in support for Cruz when compared to the same poll two months ago, an unprecedented rise in recent election cycles.
Ted Cruz has leapfrogged Donald Trump to take a commanding ten-point lead in Iowa according to a new poll which has seen support for the Texas senator triple in two months
Cruz hailed the news today, which comes two days after another poll - for Monmouth University - showed him with a lead over Trump of 24 per cent to 19 per cent
It was widely expected that Cruz was going to leapfrog Trump after the billionaire real-estate developer went on the attack yesterday morning ahead of the results.
Trump tweeted: 'Never get good [numbers] from failing Des Moines Register/Bloomberg. I think something's going on [with] them. Up 13 in Iowa according to respected CNN.'
Just hours before the poll was unveiled tonight, Trump was again reminding supporters of the CNN poll, saying: 'New CNN Iowa poll - Trump 33, Cruz 20. Everyone else way down!
The numbers are likely to cause more friction between the candidates who until now had played nice for the cameras
'Don't trust Des Monies Register poll - biased towards Trump!'
The Des Monies poll comes just days after Cruz was endorsed by 'kingmaker' Robert Vander Plaats, who commands the confidence of a swathe of evangelical voters in Iowa.
Plaats, who endorsed eventual Iowa caucus winner Rick Santorum in 2012, gave his back to Cruz on Thursday, calling him the 'extraordinary leader that we need for these extraordinary times'.
The poll was carried out between December 7 and 10, so it is likely that Cruz could have seen support jump even further since then.
Cruz's campaign has also not been financing the race in Iowa as well as battles in other states, according to CNN, meaning there is potential to open up his lead even further.
The poll was also carried out in the wake of Trump's controversial comments on Muslims being banned from entering the U.S.
While voters were not asked what they thought of these remarks, it is possible that the ensuing backlash from Democrats and GOP politicians alike could have played into people's decision.
The latest results come two days after another poll, for Monmouth University, also found that Cruz had leapfrogged Donald Trump in Iowa, attracting 24 per cent of votes to Trump's 19 per cent.
The results will likely cause further friction between overall frontrunner Trump and Cruz, who have until now avoided attacking one another.
Cruz's tactic has been to avoid alienating Trump's supporters so that, should the businessman's campaign falter, voters could consider backing him instead.
The new poll was widely expected to show Cruz ahead after Trump sent out this tweet yesterday, lashing out at the 'failing' pollsters and accusing them of bias
Just hours before the new poll came out Trump tweeted the results of another poll which he claims shows him ahead with a 13-point lead
Indeed, surveys of likely Trump and Cruz voters show a large number of backers would consider voting for the other candidate as a second choice.
However, that approach appeared to be faltering yesterday after Cruz was recorded at a closed-door fundraiser calling Trump's judgement into question on national security.
That prompted a series of jibes from Trump aimed to discredit Cruz among evangelicals and show him as beholden to big oil firms, an especially important issue in Iowa.
While Trump's comments at a rally in the state yesterday marked a considerable change in rhetoric from several months ago, he also repeatedly stated that he 'likes' Cruz and could consider him as a running mate - perhaps suggesting that he is wary of support changing sides also.
Cruz will have to be careful, however, as Trump tends to viciously take down any opponents who approach him in the polls - dispatching Bush early on as 'boring' and then painting Ben Carson as 'pathologically' violent after he confessed to fighting as a youngster.
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