MANCHESTER, N.H. — Former President Trump has maintained his 16-point lead for Tuesday’s New Hampshire primary over his closest GOP opponent, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, according to the latest tracking poll released Friday.
Mr. Trump has kept the same voter advantage over Ms. Haley since landing in the Granite State on Tuesday following his blowout win in the Iowa caucuses.
The poll underscores the difficulty Ms. Haley faces in her quest to upend the race by defeating Mr. Trump in the state.
The Suffolk University tracking poll showed Mr. Trump with 51.8% of the vote versus Ms. Haley’s 35.4%.
The poll shows little movement from Wednesday, when Suffolk polled Mr. Trump at 50.4% and Ms. Haley at 33.8%.
In both polls, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis placed a distant third, earning 5.2% of the vote Wednesday and 6.4% two days later.
Mr. Trump has kept his lead despite Ms. Haley barnstorming the state, often with New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu by her side. She’s held meet-and-greet events at diners, colleges and country clubs and is planning evening rallies leading up to the primary. She’ll appear at a rally Sunday night with Judy Sheindlin, otherwise known as Judge Judy.
Mr. Trump has kept his big lead despite making far fewer appearances this week in New Hampshire, spending some of his days in a Manhattan courtroom where he sat for the penalty phase in a lawsuit. On Thursday, he attended his mother-in-law’s funeral.
Meanwhile, he has hosted several nighttime rallies in the Granite State and plans three more over the weekend.
Ms. Haley is running to shake up the race for the Republican presidential nomination, which has been dominated by Mr. Trump.
The former president has questioned Ms. Haley’s conservative credentials to New Hampshire voters, accusing her of getting her campaign funding from Democratic donors and support from the state’s Democratic voters. Ms. Haley accused Mr. Trump of “lying to the American people” and called on him to debate her.
Mr. Trump has not participated in a single debate this election cycle, citing his huge lead.
The former president won the Iowa caucuses with 51%, a record 30-point margin, and swept all but one county in the Hawkeye State.
New Hampshire’s more moderate Republicans and huge block of undeclared voters have boosted Ms. Haley’s numbers and made the primary more competitive than in Iowa, where conservatives and evangelicals dominated the turnout, which was less than 15% of the state’s registered GOP voters.
Friday’s Suffolk poll found only 4% of likely voters were undecided, a slight decrease from 6% polled Wednesday.
Mr. DeSantis, with 36.6%, was the top pick by voters asked for their second-choice candidate.
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
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