Election 2016 Polls: Before South Carolina GOP Debate, Where Do The Republican Candidates Stand?

The Republican field of U.S. presidential candidates has narrowed since the last debate, with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Hewlett-Packard Co. CEO Carly Fiorina both abandoning their campaigns. Before the remaining contenders take to the stage in Greenville, South Carolina, for the debate Saturday night, here’s a look at the latest polling numbers indicating where they stand as they begin to look toward Super Tuesday (March 1).

Billionaire Businessman Donald Trump

Across the country, Trump continues to lead his GOP rivals in polls in both traditionally red states (those with a tendency to vote Republican) and traditionally blue states (those with a tendency to vote Democrat). In an Augusta Chronicle, Morris News Service and WAGA-TV poll that surveyed 779 respondents Feb. 10-11 with a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points, 36.3 percent of likely GOP voters supported Trump.

A Soonerpoll.com poll of 414 likely Republican voters in Oklahoma conducted Feb. 6-9 showed Trump in the lead with 30 percent support. The poll had a margin of error of 4.81 percentage points.

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas

The senator from Texas came closest to the front-runner in both of the above-referenced polls. In South Carolina, Cruz had 19.6 percent support. In Oklahoma, he had 25.3 percent support.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida

Although the senator from Florida finished in a disappointing fifth place in the New Hampshire primary election Tuesday, he was third in both recent polls. In South Carolina, Rubio had 14.6 percent support. In Oklahoma, he had 21 percent support.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush

With a fourth-place finish in the New Hampshire primary, Bush ranked No. 4 in the South Carolina poll, with 10.9 percent support, and No. 5 in the Oklahoma poll, with 4.6 percent support.

Dr. Ben Carson

The retired neurosurgeon has continued to lose ground. Carson came in sixth in the South Carolina poll, with 4.7 percent support, and fifth in the Oklahoma poll, with 5.7 percent support.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich

After a second-place finish in New Hampshire, Kasich could gain some momentum going into the next couple of presidential-nomination contests. In the South Carolina poll, he ranked No. 5, with 8.7 percent support. In the Oklahoma poll, however, he was close to the bottom of the pack, with only 2.8 percent support.