Nikki Haley takes the lead over Ron DeSantis in new Iowa poll; both trail Trump

WASHINGTON — Nikki Haley is taking the lead over Ron DeSantis in Iowa just a few days before the caucuses, a new poll finds.

But a Suffolk University poll, conducted Jan. 6-10 among 500 likely Republican caucusgoers, shows the former South Carolina governor and Florida governor both still trailing Donald Trump. The former president has maintained his position as a frontrunner throughout the race and 54% of voters say he's their first choice, according to the Suffolk poll.

Meanwhile, the poll found that 20% of voters said they would support Haley, 13% would support DeSantis and 6% would support businessman Vivek Ramaswamy.

Haley is performing strongly with moderate and liberal leaning independents, with 42% of support compared to Trump’s 31%, according to the poll. 

The poll has a margin of error of plus and minus 4.4 percentage points.

Multiple polls have shown DeSantis and Haley battling for second place in Iowa. In some instances, the Florida governor has bagged the spot over Haley; in others, both candidates come tied behind Trump.

Haley has also seen a surge in New Hampshire, the nation’s first in the primary state. The Saint Anselm College Survey Center on Thursday released a survey that found 31% of likely Republican primary voters would support her while 45% would back Trump.

But she still has a long way to go if she wants to clinch the Republican nomination from Trump. Some political analysts speculate that with former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie out of the race, Haley could shore up more support among voters.