Clinton, Carson lead way in newest Iowa polls

DES MOINES - It is a two-horse race in Iowa for the Democratic nomination for president.

And Hillary Clinton has surged ahead of Bernie Sanders by a couple of lengths, according to a new poll.

Clinton was selected by 51 percent of respondents in a new Quinnipiac University poll published Friday morning. Sanders was chosen by 40 percent of respondents.

That is a significant swing from Quinnipiac's September poll, which found the race in a virtual dead heat - Sanders at 41 percent Clinton at 40 percent.

It appears Clinton was helped at least in part by her performance in the first Democratic debate.

The new Quinnipiac poll surveyed 592 likely Iowa Democratic caucus participants between Oct. 14 - the day after the debate - and Oct. 20, and found that Democratic voters believed by a two-to-one ratio that Clinton had the best performance in the debate.

Of the 48 percent of poll participants who watched the debate, 62 percent said Clinton fared best, while 31 percent said Sanders had the best performance.

'A strong debate performance doesn't always translate into better poll numbers, but it sure did for Hillary Clinton,” Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll, said in a news release. 'Clinton had been losing momentum among the key Iowa Caucus participants and last month was tied with Sen. Bernie Sanders, who seemed to have the momentum in Iowa and nationally. But the debate seemed to reverse that trend and once again she is the leader of the pack in Iowa.”

Clinton and Sanders have the Democratic field to themselves, according to the poll, in which Martin O'Malley was third with 4 percent of the vote and no other Democrat received a full percent.

The Quinnipiac poll's margin of error is 4 percent.

Democratic men and women are sharply divided on the top candidates. Sanders leads Clinton among men, 51 percent to 39 percent, and Clinton leads among women, 59 percent to 33 percent.

SECOND POLL SHOWS CARSON LEADING GOP FIELD

Quinnipiac's poll on the GOP race, published Thursday morning, showed Ben Carson overtaking Donald Trump for the top spot in Iowa.

On Friday morning, a new Des Moines Register/Iowa Poll showed the same thing.

Carson was chosen by 28 percent of respondents in the new Iowa Poll, passing Trump at 19 percent.

That is almost identical to the previous day's Quinnipiac poll, which showed Carson at 28 percent and Trump at 20 percent.

Trump had been leading the GOP field almost exclusively since entering the race in mid-June.

The Iowa Poll surveyed 401 likely Republican caucusgoers between Oct. 16 and Oct. 19. The margin of error is 4.9 percent.