Results yield from a new Fox News poll on Thursday confirmed that Donald Trump leads in the race for the Republican nomination in South Carolina, only two days before the GOP primary there.
The billionaire captures 32 percent among likely Republican electors, while Ted Cruz is second with 19 percent. Marco Rubio only gets 15 percent and the other candidates did not earn double-digit support.
The difference among those who said they would absolutely vote in the GOP primary is little. Trump earned 34 percent and Cruz 20 percent. Rubio garnered 15 percent, Jeb Bush 8 percent, Ben Carson 7 percent and John Kasich 6 percent.
Still, 25 percent of these GOP likely electors say they could change their mind, according to Fox News. The candidate who has more supporters who reported they felt “certain” they would vote for him is Trump, with 83 percent.
Most Palmetto State Republicans describe themselves as evangelical Christian, with about 6 in 10, whereas 4 in 10 identify themselves as “very” conservative, and nearly 2 in 10 served in the military. Veterans, which constitute a small subgroup of electors, support Trump (37 percent) over Cruz (22 percent).
Trump tops Cruz by eight points among evangelical Christians voting in the GOP primary, while Rubio tops Bush by seven points. White people who have a college degree also go for Trump (30 percent), and put Rubio in second place over Cruz. Whites without a degree also put Trump in the first place but Cruz over Rubio by nine points.
About 39 percent, or four in ten South Carolina Republican voters said they would “never” back Trump, compared to 24 percent who felt that way in early December. When asked if they would “never” support Bush, 21 percent said they felt that way, while 19 percent said they would never vote for Cruz.
About the poll
The Fox News poll was conducted on Monday through Wednesday evenings. Support for Donald Trump has not significantly changed since December when he received 35 percent. At that time, Rubio and Cruz were tied at 14 percent.
The poll was under the direction of both Anderson Robbins Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R). According to Fox News, results for the 753 likely Republican voting in the GOP primary have a sampling error margin of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
Source: Fox News