Controversy seems to be treating Donald Trump well, as a new USA Today/Suffolk University poll shows the billionaire real estate tycoon and Republican presidential candidate far out in front of the rest of the GOP pack.
Seventeen percent of voters who identify as either Republican or independent and who plan to vote in their states' Republican primaries or caucuses said Trump was their first choice for the Republican nomination in the 2016 presidential race.
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush trailed in second with 14 percent support, followed by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker at 8 percent, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz with 6 percent and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio with 5 percent.
Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee each received 4 percent, and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie got 3 percent. The remaining contenders - former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, businesswoman Carly Fiorina, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and former New York Gov. George Pataki - received less than 2 percent.
Trump seemed to pick up serious momentum following his comments characterizing some illegal Mexican immigrants as rapists and drug dealers, comments that meant a lot to 48 percent of poll respondents. Only 15 percent said the comments make them more likely to support Trump, while 48 percent said the comments make them less likely.
"We've seen Donald Trump make it to the top, but the question is can he stay on top," said David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center, according to USA Today. "In 2012, Michele Bachmann and Herman Cain led the GOP primary field briefly but only to fade."
When Trump was put up head-to-head against Bush, 17 percent of self-identified conservative or very conservative Republican voters picked Trump, while just 11 percent favored Bush.
Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton led Trump in a one-to-one matchup, 51 percent to 34 percent. That's worse than any other Republican candidate fared against Clinton in a head-to-head matchup.
Bush was the strongest candidate against Clinton, only lagging by four points, 46 percent to 42 percent.
Rubio trailed Clinton by 6 percentage points, Huckabee by 8 points, Walker by 9 points, Paul by 10 points and Carson by 13 points.
The survey was conducted among 1,000 adults between July 9 and July 12 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
As HNGN previously reported, poll numbers will play an increasingly important role leading up to the first Republican debate on Aug. 6 in Cleveland, which is co-sponsored by Fox News and Facebook. Only 10 candidates will be invited, and to qualify, a contender must "place in the top 10 of an average of the five most recent national polls, as recognized by Fox News leading up to August 4th at 5 PM/ET. Such polling must be conducted by major, nationally recognized organizations that use standard methodological techniques."
Some have said Fox's selection criteria could encourage candidates to ramp up the headline-grabbing rhetoric in the weeks leading up to the debates to temporarily boost polling numbers and secure a spot on the stage. And while Trump certainly shouldn't have a problem in the drama department - just today he tweeted an image of him, the White House, and what appeared to be Nazi troops, overlayed on top of an American flag - when The Washington Post asked if he was looking forward to the upcoming debate, Trump simply shrugged and said, "No, not one way or the other. Whatever. I don't look forward or not look forward. It is what it is."
