CBS Poll: Ted Cruz Remains Ahead in Iowa with 40%, Trump Second at 31%

According to the latest CBS poll, Texas senator Ted Cruz remains in the lead in Iowa with 40 percent of likely Republican caucus-goers as opposed to Donald Trump coming in second with 31 percent. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) is a distant third with 12%. If the polling continues to play out like this, an Iowa win will gain momentum for Cruz and although New Hampshire is probably not in play, South Carolina is.

What’s that sound? The establishment GOP’s collective stomach churning as conservative Ted Cruz could be the real deal for the GOP primary.

Ted Cruz maintains a strong lead over Donald Trump in Iowa, according to the results of a poll released Sunday.

The Texas senator, in the CBS poll, grabbed the support of 40 percent of likely Republican caucus-goers in Iowa. Trump is at 31 percent, followed by Marco Rubio at 12 percent and Ben Carson at 6 percent. Every other GOP candidate receives 2 percent or less in the poll.

The CBS poll follows last week’s Iowa Poll — which showed Cruz with a 10-point lead over Trump, 31 percent to 21 percent — and a Monmouth University poll that had him in first place with 24 percent among all Republican candidates.

Polls of Iowa and the country as a whole have painted two different pictures: Trump remains atop national polls.