WASHINGTON — A new poll of Republicans in Iowa has New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie with among the worst favorability ratings in a crowded field of presidential candidates, and with just 1 percent of likely caucus participants saying they would vote for him.
The New Jersey governor’s campaign, official launched on Tuesday, has put a higher priority on the New Hampshire primary that the caucuses in Iowa, where voters are more conservative and the record Christie built in a heavily Democratic state does not play as well.
The Quinnipiac University poll released on Wednesday shows how steep a mountain Christie must climb in Iowa, and could be a sign he faces trouble qualifying for the top tier of candidates invited to join in presidential debates.
Christie is not alone with low single-digit ratings in Iowa, however, so the poll also shows how wide open the race is.
Of the 16 declared and likely candidates, Christie is one of nine with support from 5 percent or fewer voters. The others are former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, at 5 percent; former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, 4 percent; businesswoman Carly Fiorina and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, 3 percent; Ohio Gov. John Kasich, 2 percent; South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, 1 percent; and former New York Gov. George Pataki, zero percent.
The poll’s margin of error is plus or minus 3.8 percentage points, meaning each result could be that much higher or lower.
Christie is one of the better known candidates in the field, and one of the most disliked. Asked if they approved or disapproved of each person in the field, just 25 percent of caucus goers said they approved of Christie while 59 percent said they disapproved. The next highest disapproval ratings were 47 percent for businessman Donald Trump and 42 percent for former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, but Trump’s approval rating was 42 percent and Bush’s was 46 percent.
Asked who they would definitely not vote for, 28 percent of caucus goers said Trump, 24 percent Bush, and 18 percent Christie.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker did best in the pack, with 18 percent of voters saying they would likely vote for him, followed by Trump and surgeon Ben Carson, with 10 percent each. Next were Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Rand Paul of Kentucky, 9 percent each; Bush, 8 percent; and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, 7 percent.
Quinnipiac pollsters used land lines and cell phones to survey 666 likely Iowa Republican caucus participants between June 20 and 29.
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