As another Republican presidential candidate emerges in the wake of the Pocahontas controversy, Donald Trump maintains an impressive lead in the Great Lake State of Michigan. According to a new Monmouth University poll released on Tuesday, Trump leads the GOP field by more than four-to-one among Republicans who said they are likely to vote in the state’s Republican presidential primary in March.
The Monmouth poll found that Trump holds a commanding lead in Michigan, with 40% support among likely GOP primary voters. His closest challenger, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, comes in a distant second with only 8%. Support for Representative Paul Ryan, who announced his candidacy this week, was not included in the survey.
Among those who said they approved of Trump’s job performance (56%), his support stands at 56%. That figure rises to 68% among the 44% of the primary voters who describe themselves as “very conservative.” Trump also has high favorability ratings across the board, with 70% of all GOP primary voters rating him favorably and only 25% viewing him unfavorably.
The poll of 403 likely GOP primary voters was conducted by live telephone interviews from October 15-19 and has a margin of error of +/- 4.9%.
The impressive performance of Trump in Michigan comes despite difficulties in his campaign. Despite his early surge in the polls and success in the Iowa caucuses, the Trump campaign has been criticized for its lackluster organization, controversial policy proposals, and poor debate performances. He also recently faced criticism for claiming that Native Americans are not U.S. citizens.
The Monmouth poll suggests, however, that these difficulties aren’t enough to dent Trump’s popularity among Michigan Republicans. With the state’s Republican primary set to occur on March 8, Trump looks poised to finish a strong first in the Great Lakes State.
“Michigan Poll Results: Trump Commanding GOP Lead by Over 4x the Competition!
