Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley beat Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) in a new Iowa poll Thursday, surpassing him to reach second place ahead of the state’s caucuses next week.
Haley posted 20% in a new Suffolk University Political Research Center poll, compared to DeSantis’s 13%. The Florida governor has notably spent the latter portion of his primary campaign focused on Iowa, traveling to each of the state’s 99 counties and moving a third of his campaign staff to the Hawkeye State.
“Ron DeSantis’ commitment to Iowa has earned him the second highest personal popularity in the poll, but popularity does not equal first choice preference,” SUPRC Director David Paleologos told the Washington Examiner.
He pointed out that 50% of the Iowans who had favorable opinions for DeSantis were still voting for former President Donald Trump, with just 21% opting for the Florida governor.
DeSantis’s campaign did not provide comment to the Washington Examiner.
Despite Haley’s triumph over DeSantis in the survey, she did not manage to come close to former President Donald Trump, who had the support of 54% of likely Iowa caucusgoers — 34 percentage points more than the former U.N. ambassador.
“Among those that view Haley favorably, Haley beat Trump 41% to 35%,” Paleologos said.
“Sometimes likability does not directly translate to electability,” he added.
The poll of 500 likely Iowa Republican caucusgoers was conducted following two blunders by Haley, one regarding her answer on the cause of the Civil War, which omitted slavery, and another surrounding her claim that New Hampshire corrects Iowa’s caucus choice, which her opponents had tried to weaponize against her.
Paleologos noted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that when former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie was excluded from the survey, Haley gained two points, posting 22% to Trump’s unchanged 54%. DeSantis’s 13% also remained the same.
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The Iowa caucuses will take place Monday, and Trump still maintains a significant double-digit lead over his opponents. However, Iowa caucus veterans and pollsters have warned not to make assumptions as the caucuses have the potential to surprise.
While Trump is still expected to come out on top, some analysts have said Haley does not necessarily need to beat him in Iowa. Rather, she just needs to finish strongly and with enough momentum to take him on in New Hampshire on Jan. 23.
