Ron DeSantis leads Donald Trump in early battleground of Iowa

Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump face a tight battle for the Republican presidential nomination in states holding early primaries, despite national polls showing a comfortable lead for the former president.

In a head-to-head, Trump trails the Florida governor by eight points in Iowa, the first state to choose its Republican candidate. The two are tied in New Hampshire, where the second contest will be held.

However, polling also showed that having several candidates on the ballot would benefit Trump, as it did in 2016, with the former president faring much better in a wider field.

The polling is significant because results in early contests can give crucial momentum to successful candidates. Each state holds its own contest, starting with the Iowa caucus early in February and continuing into the summer.

Recent general polls showed Trump, 76, opening a strong lead in the battle for the Republican nomination. A Monmouth University survey last week put him on 41 per cent among party voters and DeSantis on 27 per cent. No other potential candidate reaches double figures.

The state surveys by Public Opinion Strategies found DeSantis leading Trump by 45 per cent to 37 per cent in a head-to-head in Iowa and the pair tied on 39 per cent in New Hampshire, Axios reported.

However, in a more crowded field featuring Nikki Haley, the former governor of South Carolina who was also the American ambassador to the UN, DeSantis was tied with Trump in Iowa and trailed him by 12 points in New Hampshire.

DeSantis, 44, has yet to declare his candidacy but has embarked on a tour to promote his book, The Courage to be Free.

“National polling has shown Trump significantly ahead of DeSantis but these polls suggest DeSantis is performing better in the early states, where voters pay closer attention,” Axios said.

Republican voters were split on “the best candidate to defeat Joe Biden”, which Axios said was a warning for DeSantis. Trump’s weakness was “temperament”, the polling suggested: 68 per cent of Iowa Republicans and 71 per cent in New Hampshire said DeSantis was less mercurial.

DeSantis fares better than Trump in a hypothetical head-to-head against President Biden. He is on 42.1 per cent to Biden’s 42.3 per cent among general voters, whereas Trump is on 42.2 per cent against Biden’s 43.9 per cent.

Source: The Times