Haley sees 10-point boost in New Hampshire poll

Days ahead of the Jan. 15 Iowa caucuses, Indian American Republican presidential aspirant Nikki Haley has gained a 10-point boost in New Hampshire, while former President Donald Trump has lost support there since November, new polling shows.

An Emerson College Polling/WHDH New Hampshire survey released Thursday found Haley, daughter of immigrants from India, sitting at 28% in the state’s presidential primary, up from 18% in November.

Trump, on the other hand, had 44% support among Republican primary voters in the Granite State, down from 49% in November.

Haley blasts DeSantis to be top Trump alternative (January 11, 2024)

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis holds just 7% in the new poll, unchanged from November.

After the Iowa accuses, which kickstart the Republican presidential nomination process, contenders face the New Hampshire primary Jan. 23.

Trump is leading the field by double-digits in both states, but Haley has been gaining ground in New Hampshire, as the non-Trump candidates scramble to stand out as the top alternative to the former president.

READ: Nikki Haley slashes Trump’s lead in New Hampshire (January 9, 2024)

Iowa and New Hampshire are among the early states looked at as signals for the rest of the election cycle, and strategists cited by the Hill say a big Trump win in those states could effectively decide the race.

On Wednesday, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who polled at 12% in the latest New Hampshire poll — higher than DeSantis — suspended his campaign.

The survey was conducted Jan 8-10 among 751 New Hampshire Republican presidential primary voters and has a credibility interval of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

Haley now faces the challenge of surpassing Trump with Christie’s decision to drop out giving her a boost as she looks to consolidate support after rising in the polls and putting up impressive fundraising totals.

Nikki Haley gaining ground in New Hampshire: poll (December 24, 2023)

But although Christie and Haley were likely competing for similar voters, the former New Jersey governor’s supporters may not all automatically get behind her, giving her work to do, according to the Hill.

“We’re assuming that there’s going to be a lot of overlap between these two constituencies, but of course, not every Christie voter is going to go for her, and of course, some Christie voters may break to other candidates,”  Ashley Koning, the director of Rutgers University’s Eagleton Center for Public Interest Polling, was quoted as saying.

Haley is generally seen as one of the more moderate candidates in the race, suggesting those who backed Christie might migrate to her. Indeed, some polls have shown Christie supporters, who are largely looking to have the Republican Party move on from Trump, indicating they see Haley as their second choice.

Of Christie’s supporters, 52% listed Haley as their second choice, far more than any other candidate in the Emerson College poll.

Haley has surged in the polls in recent months, and some surveys have shown her even competitive with Trump, the Hill noted.