Pete Buttigieg leads the Democratic field for the first time in a new poll released by Monmouth University, though the pollster says voters are not solid about their choices.
Writes Monmouth: “Buttigieg has gained ground among every major demographic group since the summer. His support stands at 26% among voters who describe themselves as moderate or conservative, 23% among those who are somewhat liberal, and 15% among those who are very liberal. He is currently in the top tier for both women (24%, to 22% for Biden, and 20% for Warren), and men (20%, to 19% for Sanders and 16% for Warren). Looking at the poll results by age, Buttigieg (26%) is nipping at Biden's heels (29%) among voters age 65 and older. He has a slight advantage among those age 50 to 64 (24%, to 17% each for Biden and Warren), and is competitive among voters under the age of 50 (19%, to 24% for Warren and 19% for Sanders). Buttigieg leads among college graduates (24%, to 21% for Warren and 15% for Biden) and is in the top tier among those without a college degree (21%, to 21% for Biden, 18% for Sanders, and 16% for Warren).”
Monmouth adds: “Buttigieg's gains since the summer have been across the board, with increasing support coming from nearly every demographic group. Regardless, less than one-third of likely caucusgoers say that they are firmly set on their choice of candidate and most would not be too disappointed if they had to switch their support. The poll also finds that Mike Bloomberg receives a chilly reception among Hawkeye State Democrats as he considers whether to make a late entry into the nomination contest.”
“The Monmouth University Poll was conducted by telephone from November 7 to 11, 2019 with 451 Iowa voters who are likely to attend the Democratic presidential caucuses in February 2020, out of 966 registered Democrats and unaffiliated voters who were contacted for the poll. The question results in this release have a margin of error of +/- 4.6 percentage points.”
