Ted Cruz’s Support MORE THAN DOUBLES Following GOP Debate; Surges to Second Place; RINOs Crash
Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina and Dr. Ben Carson moved up in the polls the most in the first polls conducted following the first GOP presidential debates.
In a new NBC News/Survey Monkey poll released on Sunday, Texas Senator Ted Cruz, a constitutional conservative, catapulted into second place overall, increasing by a whopping 7% over the prior poll, putting him at 13% overall, more than doubling his prior support of 6%, according to the poll.
Cruz, a former national collegiate debate champion, soared despite having his debate performance largely put on mute mode by major media outlets, including FOX News.
Businesswoman Carly Fiorina, who most believe won the “happy hour” debate among the bottom seven candidates, surged 6%, leapfrogging several candidates and is now tied for fourth place with Florida Senator Marco Rubio, whose numbers were unchanged following the debate.
Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson increased his poll numbers by three points, moving into third place overall. Carson was considered to have one of the strongest closing statements of any candidate in either debate.
Overall, it was a terrible night, according to the poll, for establishment RINO candidates. Establishment-backed candidate Jeb Bush, who has constantly been pushed by media outlets as the inevitable GOP nominee, fell from second place all the way to being tied for fifth place with Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. Both Bush and Walker had three points shaved off their prior to the debate numbers following their uninspiring debate performances.
Another RINO, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, who got into a heated brouhaha with Kentucky Senator Rand Paul over the Fourth Amendment and NSA spying, crashed by 2/3, falling all the way to 1% from 3%. Rand Paul dropped 1%, but is now only 2% below Jeb Bush.
Ohio Governor John Kasich, who sounded like a big government progressive during the debate and was roundly praised by both liberal media and FOX News pundits, actually lost support, losing a full 1/3 of his prior supporters.
Below is the new breakdown for the still crowded GOP field following the first debates, according to the new NBC News/Survey Monkey poll:
Donald Trump – 23% (up 1%)
Ted Cruz – 13% (up 7%)
Ben Carson – 11% (up 3%)
Carly Fiorina – 8% (up 6%)
Marco Rubio – 8% (unchanged)
Scott Walker – 7% (down 3%)
Jeb Bush – 7% (down 3%)
Rand Paul – 5% (down 1%)
Mike Huckabee – 5% (up 1%)
Rick Perry – 2% (unchanged)
John Kasich – 2% (down 1%)
Bobby Jindal – 1% (unchanged)
Chris Christie – 1% (down 2%)
Lindsey Graham – 1% (unchanged)
Rick Santorum – 0% (down 1%)
George Pataki – 0% (unchanged)
Real estate tycoon Donald Trump helped himself slightly during the debate, according to the poll. Trump, who has left the political class shocked and dumbfounded over his surprising success, increased by 1% and leads at 23%, 10% over Cruz’s 13%.
