Nikki Haley is trailing Donald Trump by only four points in the latest poll of New Hampshire voters, setting the stage for a dramatic showdown on January 23.
Haley, the former governor of South Carolina and Trump’s UN ambassador, was chosen by 29 percent of likely Republican voters in the American Research Group poll.
Trump secured 33 percent of support.
The pollsters spoke to 361 Republicans and 239 undeclared voters between December 14-20.
Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey, came in third with 13 percent of support, beating Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, who was chosen by only six percent of those surveyed.
Nikki Haley is seen with Donald Trump in the Oval Office in October 2018, when she resigned as his UN ambassador. She was praised for managing to keep Trump and his supporters on side, but not being tarnished by the proximity
DeSantis is still the second-placed candidate to Trump nationwide, but his candidacy has disappointed many, who expected him to easily defeat Trump.
Vivek Ramaswamy, the entrepreneur and political newcomer who burned brightly but has fizzled out under intense scrutiny, came in fifth with only 5 percent of support.
The poll is consistent with the steady climb Haley has made since the beginning of the fall, helped by strong performances in the primary debates and several key endorsements.
Her campaign was delighted to secure the backing of New Hampshire’s four-time governor, the widely liked Chris Sununu.
And on Monday, Haley’s team unveiled another 50 names of local politicians and businesspeople who are backing her.
‘Granite Staters are ready for a new generation of conservative leadership,’ said Olivia Perez-Cubas, Haley’s spokesperson.
‘As Nikki continues to surge, it’s clear this is a two-person race between Nikki and Donald Trump and we look forward to debating him one-to-one.’
Trump is yet to participate in any of the debates, and it’s not clear he will.
Trump is seen on December 19 at a rally in Waterloo, Iowa
Haley is pictured on Thursday at a rally in Anamosa, Iowa, ahead of the first vote in the election, on January 15
Chris Christie, Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis and Vivek Ramaswamy pictured on December 6 during the debate in Alabama
Christie is facing calls to drop out and allow his supporters to back Haley, but he is not showing signs of wanting to do so.
Sununu said Christie should ‘clear the way’ for Haley, saying she was the best-placed candidate to defeat Trump.
‘I’m behind Nikki Haley,’ said Sununu, when asked if the former New Jersey governor should drop out.
‘I think they should all get out frankly, including former President Trump. I think everyone should kind of clear the way.’
But Christie insisted his candidacy was still strong.
‘I’m not going anywhere, so let’s be really clear about that,’ he said.
He added that it wasn’t Sununu’s job ‘to tell anybody when to get out.’