Donald Trump had better look in his rearview mirror–because Carly Fiorina is within single digits of his lead, according to a latest poll.
A recent CNN poll has Fiorina, the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard who has been praised for her performance in the second presidential debate, at 15%–just 9 points below Trump.
The poll also has Trump’s lead shrinking to 24%, following a shaky debate performance where he was often slammed, successfully, by Fiorina for his business record, his controversial comments towards women, and his ideological fluidity.
Before the debate, Trump had been polling as high as 33%–which makes his slip to 24% all the more surprising.
Ben Carson is in third place, right behind Fiorina, at 14%.
Trump, Fiorina, and Carson occupying the top three slots in the Republican polls is historic–because, between the three of them, they have exactly zero years of experience in elected office.
That speaks to the palpable anger at the political system from the right–more than half of Republicans are currently supporting someone with no political experience. Politicians who were considered “frontrunners” just a few months ago have seen their poll numbers crater. CNN puts former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the one-time favorite for the nomination, in fifth place, at just 9%. And Scott Walker, the Governor of Wisconsin who was expected to be a strong contender, polled at 0% in the CNN poll, following a rough two debates.
While the election season is still young, and the polls will continue to be volatile for weeks to come, it’s clear that 2016 might just be the Year of the Outsider–but that outsider might not be Donald Trump.
