Views of Sens. Rubio, Cruz Skyrocket Following Third GOP Debate
BOULDER, CO – OCTOBER 28: Presidential candidates Ohio Governor John Kasich (L-R), Mike Huckabee, Jeb Bush, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Donald Trump, Ben Carson, Carly Fiorina, Ted Cruz (R-TX), New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) take the stage at the CNBC Republican Presidential Debate at University of Colorados Coors Events Center October 28, 2015 in Boulder, Colorado. Fourteen Republican presidential candidates are participating in the third set of Republican presidential debates. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
According to a post Republican debate poll conducted by Gravis Marketing, 26.7% of registered GOP voters say Donald Trump won round three. Worth noting, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush was the clear loser of the CNBC debate in Boulder, Colorado, aside of course from the network, itself.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who took on the moderators in what was perhaps the most noteworthy moment of the night, and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who destroyed Bush in a heated exchange early in the night, saw their favorables skyrocket. Now, 62% and 64% say they view Cruz and Rubio more favorable, respectively. Trump, too, benefited from the night, as 50% now say they view him more favorable than they did before and only 23% saying less favorable.
CNBC was the clear loser of the night even more so than Jeb Bush, with a whopping 76% saying the network’s moderators were unfair to the candidates in their questioning. In fact, John Harwood lied not once but twice during the debate; once pertaining to Rubio’s tax plan and the other involving Trump renegotiating the terms of the debate. The network is being widely criticized by the media from right to left and, at least on this issue, the pundits appear to have it right.
The Donald, the billionaire real estate mogul and maintaining frontrunner, leads his chief rival Dr. Ben Carson nationwide 32.7% to 22.6%, with Sen. Rubio coming in a distant third at 14.5%. However, that represents nearly a double-digit jump for Sen. Rubio since the previous Gravis Marketing Poll.
Gravis Marketing conducted a random survey of 1,504 registered Republican voters, and the poll has a margin of error of ± 2.5%. The total may not round to 100% because of rounding. The polls were conducted using automated telephone calls (IVR technology) and weighted by voting demographics. The poll was conducted for One America News Network.
