Steyer surges to third in early state tracking poll

Businessman Tom Steyer surged to third place in the Morning Consult tracker of the four early primary and caucus states, his best showing in the poll since he launched his presidential campaign.

Steyer garnered 15 percent support in an average of survey responses from Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina, according to the poll released Tuesday.

The figures suggest that the billionaire businessman’s strategy of blanketing the airwaves and internet with ads is paying off as candidates compete for support before the first nominating contests next month.

Steyer, who jumped 5 points from the same poll last week, trails former Vice President Joe Biden, who is in first with 27 percent support, and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who comes in at second with 19 percent. Steyer outpaces other heavyweights in the poll like Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), who garners 12 percent, and former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who is at 9 percent.

“Tom’s surging because his message is resonating: Washington is broken and that in order to fix it, we need to beat Trump and end corporate control of our government,” Steyer’s campaign manager Heather Hargreaves said in a statement. “The groundswell of support reflects the excitement we’re seeing in the early states when Tom has a chance to meet face-to-face with people and share his vision of building shared prosperity for all.”

The boost comes after two surprise Fox News polls showing Steyer at 12 percent in Nevada and 15 percent in South Carolina, marking 7- and 11-point jumps in the states from October, respectively.

The two polls were enough to help Steyer qualify for Tuesday night’s primary debate in Iowa, the final such event before the Hawkeye State holds its caucus on Feb. 3.

The businessman will join Biden, Sanders, Warren, Buttigieg and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) onstage at the debate on Tuesday night.

Steyer has worked to boost his standings in the first four nominating states by sinking tens of millions of dollars of his own money into his campaign, focusing heavily on releasing a steady stream of digital and television ads. He has spent at least $67 million on the airwaves so far, outpacing all of his primary rivals in ad-spending except for former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

Morning Consult’s average of early state polls accounts for 742 voters in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina and has a margin of error of 4 percent.