Sanders, Biden in statistical dead heat in Iowa: poll

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and former Vice President Joe Biden are in a statistical dead heat atop the 2020 Democratic presidential field in Iowa just before the state’s caucuses, according to a poll released Sunday.

Sanders, at 26 percent, has a 1-point lead over Biden, which is within the margin of error of the CBS News poll, which was conducted by YouGov. 

Former South Bend, Ind. Mayor Pete Buttigieg follows with 22 percent support. He is trailed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) with 15 percent and 7 percent, respectively.

Typically, 15 percent is the threshold for obtaining delegates in Iowa, but supporters can change their picks if their first choices do not reach the cutoff. Biden is expected to make gains from Klobuchar’s and others’ supporters, CBS News noted. 

If Warren does not reach the level to obtain delegates, her supporters are likely to flock to Sanders’s side, the network added. 

More than a third of respondents say they have “definitely” made up their minds on their first-choice candidate, with 48 percent of Sanders’s voters and 40 percent of Biden’s committing to the candidates, respectively.

The poll was conducted between Jan. 16 and 23. A sample of 2,500 registered voters in Iowa were surveyed, including 1,041 self-identified Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents. The margin of error in the poll was 3.9 percent.