Romney has slight edge as Iowa prepares to caucus on Tuesday
Des Moines, IA, United States (AHN) – Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is holding a slight lead a day before Iowa Republicans caucus in the first primary event of the 2012 presidential election. A flurry of Hawkeye State polls have been released showing a close race between Romney, Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum.
An American Research Group survey released Monday finds Romney ahead with 22 percent, followed by Paul with 17 percent and Santorum at 16 percent.
Sunday, InsiderAdvantage polled Romney’s support at 23 percent, followed by Paul at 22 percent and Santorum at 18 percent.
A Public Policy Polling (PPP) survey released Sunday found Paul ahead with 20 percent, followed by Mitt Romney at 19 percent and Santorum at 18 percent. All three candidates remained a margin of error away from each other.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has fallen out of the top three in Iowa after failing to qualify for the ballot in Virginia, effectively ending his campaign’s chances of winning the state should he become the Republican nominee and face President Barack Obama in November.
Gingrich was drastically outspent in the final weeks leading up to the Iowa caucuses and admitted Monday that “I don’t think I’m going to win.”
“If you look at the numbers, that volume of negativity has done enough damage,” Gingrich told reporters. “But on the other hand, if the Des Moines Register was right and 41 percent [are] potentially undecided, who knows what’s going to happen.”
Meanwhile, Santorum continues to ride a popularity bubble heading into Tuesday. While well-known in Pennsylvania, Santorum has yet to become a household name outside of the Republican presidential primary. It remains unclear how well his support will hold up when Americans research his campaign. Google, the most popular Internet search engine, has been the target of a “not safe for work” (NSFW) anti-Santorum “smear” campaign that might shock some conservative voters unaware of the digital controversy.
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