Poll: Trump and Cruz in dead heat in Iowa

Donald Trump and Ted Cruz are running neck-and-neck in Iowa with only six days to go until the caucuses there, a new poll finds.

A Quinnipiac University survey released on Tuesday shows Trump taking 31 percent support over Cruz at 29 percent. That’s unchanged from the previous survey released in early January.

{mosads}Trump and Cruz have been in all-out war against one another as they sprint to the finish and seek to influence the dwindling number of voters who have not yet settled on a candidate.

The Quinnipiac University poll found that 39 percent of likely Republican caucus-goers say they could still change their minds before Election Day on Feb. 1. Fifty-nine percent say they’ve completely made up their minds.

“The Iowa Republican Caucus remains too close to call,” said Quinnipiac University polling director Peter A. Brown. “One week before the caucuses gather, the question is which candidate has the best field organization. If the events of the last two weeks haven’t moved the needle, one wonders what would change it in the next six days.”

While Cruz is running strong in the most recent Quinnipiac poll, Trump has been pulling away from him in several other recent surveys of Iowa. Trump leads by more than 6 points in Iowa, according to the RealClearPolitics average of survey.

Trump’s strength in the Quinnipiac poll lies with self-described “moderate” or “liberal” Republicans. He leads Cruz among these voters 37 percent to 6 percent.

Cruz, meanwhile, has double-digit leads over Trump among Tea Party conservatives, evangelicals and those who identify as “very conservative.”

Nearly a quarter of likely Iowa caucus-goers – 24 percent – say they wouldn’t vote for Trump under any circumstances. Only former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush matches Trump in that category, while only 12 percent said the same of Cruz.

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) is running a distant third in Iowa with 13 percent support, down from 15 percent earlier this month.

Rounding out the field are Ben Carson at 7 percent, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) at 5 percent, Jeb Bush at 4 percent, and Chris Christie at 3 percent.

The Quinnipiac University poll of 651 likely Republican caucus-goers was conducted between Jan. 18 and Jan. 14 and has a 3.8 percentage point margin of error.