--- title: Ben Carson Ties Donald Trump for Top Slot in Iowa Poll description: Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump tied Ben Carson for the top slot among Iowa Republicans in a poll released Monday canonical: https://time.com/4017238/ben-carson-donald-trump-iowa-poll/ author: Dan Kedmey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-08-31T16:23:07.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:43:40.797Z article:section: Politics og:title: The Candidate Who Just Tied Trump in Iowa og:description: For the first time. og:url: https://time.com/4017238/ben-carson-donald-trump-iowa-poll/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8619a95e5823edfe/698861b235ba6f0e55c0ef36/gettyimages-483207812.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Top-Polling GOP Candidates Participate In First Republican Presidential Debate og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Candidate Who Just Tied Trump in Iowa twitter:description: For the first time. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8619a95e5823edfe/698861b235ba6f0e55c0ef36/gettyimages-483207812.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Ben Carson Tied With Donald Trump in New Iowa Poll > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Dan Kedmey](https://time.com/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Aug 31, 2015 4:23 PM UTC  Republican presidential candidates (L-R) Ben Carson, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Donald Trump participate in the first prime-time presidential debate hosted by FOX News and Facebook at the Quicken Loans Arena August 6, 2015 in Cleveland, Ohio. Republican presidential candidates (L-R) Ben Carson, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Donald Trump participate in the first prime-time presidential debate hosted by FOX News and Facebook at the Quicken Loans Arena August 6, 2015 in Cleveland, Ohio. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  by [Dan Kedmey](https://time.com/author/dan-kedmey/)  ## Dan Kedmey Aug 31, 2015 4:23 PM UTC Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson tied real estate mogul Donald Trump for the top slot in a poll released Monday, the first time another contender has matched Trump’s lead in the state. The Monmouth University Poll showed a groundswell of support for outsider candidates with short political resumes. Carson matched Trump with 23% support among the state’s Republican voters, both of whom were followed by former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina with 10%. None of the remaining candidates, including established political players such as Jeb Bush and Scott Walker, managed to crack the double digits. “These results mark a significant shake-up in the leaderboard from Monmouth’s Iowa poll taken before the first debate,” Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute [said](http://www.monmouth.edu/assets/0/32212254770/32212254991/32212254992/32212254994/32212254995/30064771087/85775b52-ec99-4ad3-bbee-14826bdf86e5.pdf) in a public statement. The poll of 405 registered Republicans in Iowa who voted in at least one of the last two state primary elections and said they were likely to attend the caucuses was taken from Aug. 27-30\. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.9 percentage points. ### Why Republicans Run in Cowboy Boots  Like a lot of Republican ideas, the trend toward wearing cowboy boots began with Ronald Reagan. Popperfoto/Getty Images  President George W. Bush, showing off boots with the presidential seal here at his inauguration, furthered the trend. Pablo Martinez Monsivais—AP  Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, shown here on the stump in Iowa, favored cowboy boots. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  They're also a favored fashion statement for former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum. NBC News/Getty Images  Even former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani was known to sport a pair. Jose Luis Magana—AP  It's not just men. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has been known to put on a pair of cowboy boots. Jeff J. Newman—ZUMA Press/Corbis  Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee also goes for the look. Justin Sullivan—Getty Images  Like his predecessor, former Texas Gov. Rick Perry long favored cowboy boots, but he's no longer able to wear them. Tom Worner—AP  Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is also a fan. Charlie Neibergall—AP  Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul also favors boots with blue jeans, a classic Western look. Charles Ommanney—Getty Images  These days, if you're running for president as a Republican, chance are good that you are wearing cowboy boots. Richard Shiro—AP  Even Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin has been known to wear them. J.D. 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