NEW POLL: Chris Christie Vaults Ahead of DeSantis in New Hampshire, Now Second Behind Trump

AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky; AP Photo/Jeff Roberson

A new poll out of Emerson College in New Hampshire still shows former President Donald Trump with a big lead in the first-in-the-nation GOP primary. But there is a stunning change to the second spot in the poll — as former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has overtaken Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

While the competition remains not-even-close (Trump maintains a wide 40-point lead as the GOP frontrunner with the support of 49 percent of Republican Primary voters in New Hampshire) it’s very notable that not only has Christie jumped ahead of DeSantis — who is now polling in the single digits. Christie still has a long way to go to catch Trump, as he only edged out DeSantis at 9 percent.

Spencer Kimball, Executive Director of Emerson College Polling, noted the change in the race saying, “DeSantis has been the alternative to Trump in Emerson polling this presidential cycle. This is the first time we have seen DeSantis drop out of second place in our polling, and fall back into the pack of candidates.”

It’s a step in the right direction for the Christie campaign, but it’s an even stronger poll for Trump, even as he’s been indicted a fourth time on charges related to his alleged attempt to overturn the 2020 election. But the news wasn’t all good for Trump: In a matchup against his 2020 rival and the winner of that election, President Joe Biden, Biden leads Trump 48 percent to 41 percent, which is an increase since Emerson’s last poll in March. Biden’s job approval also jumped by five points to 43 percent since March, though his disapproval now stands at 46 percent.