Donald Trump has his largest lead of the GOP presidential race, according to a new CNN/ORC poll. The celebrity businessman is now favored by 36% of registered Republicans and Republican-leaning independents. Trailing him are Ted Cruz, with 16%, Ben Carson with 14% and Marco Rubio with 12% of GOP support.
Trump also has massive leads when it comes to how much voters trust candidates to handle specific issues. Fifty-five percent of voters trust him most to handle the economy. He’s also preferred to handle the federal budget (51%), illegal immigration (48%), ISIS (46%) and foreign policy (30%).
Trump’s rise came at the expense of Carson, Jeb Bush and Rand Paul, who all lost significant ground since CNN and ORC’s October poll. Bush is now polling at 3% and Paul at 1%.
Among voters without a college degree, Trump’s lead is especially strong, with a 46% share. Cruz leads among college-educated voters with a 22% share, followed by Carson, Rubio and then Trump.
According to CNN, Trump’s 20-point lead is the largest he’s had in any national live-interviewer telephone poll since he announced he was running for president.
[CNN]
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