Former UN ambassador Nikki Haley "has surged" in Iowa since last week's first Republican presidential debate, pollster Tony Fabrizio has told Republican donors, according to a polling memo obtained by Axios on Wednesday.
However, she and the other candidates remain far behind former President Donald Trump in the first two states that will vote in the Republican primaries, with Fabrizio, a pollster for Trump, writing in the memo that "[Florida Gov. Ron] DeSantis has flatlined, Haley has surged, and [entrepreneur Vivek] Ramaswamy is seen as last week's debate winner."
Fabrizio found that, in Iowa, Trump has a large lead at 44%, while DeSantis is at 18%, and Haley at 10%. Ramaswamy and South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott are tied at 7%.
In New Hampshire, Fabrizio found that Trump has another huge advantage and is at 48%, while DeSantis has 11%. Both Haley and Ramaswamy are tied at 9%, while Scott and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie each have 5% support.
In addition, Haley and Ramaswamy were widely seen as performing well in the debate, but the memo also reflects Team Trump's emphasis on DeSantis' struggles — and how it is attempting to shift the campaign's narrative from "Trump vs. DeSantis" to "Trump vs. everyone else."
Fabrizio also found that Ramaswamy, whose far-right positions have garnered attention, was the debate's "clear winner," with Haley and DeSantis tied for second.
The Washington Post, FiveThirtyEight and Ipsos also carried out a poll following the Republican debate. That survey found that 29% of potential Republican primary voters thought DeSantis won the debate, compared with 26% for Ramaswamy and 15% for Haley.