A poll released this week found Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley trails former President Trump by 4 points in New Hampshire, prompting online outrage from the former president.
According to a December survey by American Research Group Inc. asking voters who their preference was in the Republican presidential primary, Trump earned 33 percent support.
Haley earned 29 percent, a significant milestone for the former U.N. ambassador, who appears to have been gaining ground on Trump’s steady lead in the state; the gap between her and the former president was well within the poll’s margin of error of 4 points.
Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie earned 13 percent in the survey, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis received 6 percent support and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy brought in 5 percent.
Haley showed confidence this week, saying Trump is “getting nervous” about her rising support in the polls, citing a new ad that targets her.
A spokesperson for Haley said it is clear that “this is a two-person race” between Haley and Trump, and they “hope to see him on the debate stage in Iowa.”
Trump told conservative talk show host Hugh Hewitt on Friday that he was not worried about the poll or Haley’s chances in New Hampshire. He later took to his social media site Truth Social to say the poll was fake.
“Fake New Hampshire poll was released on Birdbrain,” Trump said about Haley, using the nickname he coined in September. “Just another scam! Ratings challenged FoxNews will play it to the hilt. Sununu now one of the least popular governors in the U.S. Real poll to follow.”
New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) endorsed Haley last week, a significant win for her as she hopes to gain momentum in the final few weeks.
Sununu went after Trump after announcing the endorsement, saying a second Trump term would be filled with “chaos and distraction.” Trump has attacked Sununu online since the endorsement.
Haley has doubled her support in the early voting state since September, according to another survey released by the Saint Anselm College Survey Center. It found Haley earning 30 percent of the likely Republican primary vote, 14 points behind Trump.
The American Research Group survey of 600 likely Republican primary voters was conducted Dec. 14-20.