Just more than a week after the second round of Democratic primary debates, new national polls show the race tightening. Although Former Vice President Joe Biden Joe BidenPelosi slams Trump executive order on pre-existing conditions: It 'isn't worth the paper it's signed on' Hillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns Fox News poll: Biden ahead of Trump in Nevada, Pennsylvania and Ohio MORE has maintained his frontrunner status, Senator Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenHillicon Valley: Subpoenas for Facebook, Google and Twitter on the cards | Wray rebuffs mail-in voting conspiracies | Reps. raise mass surveillance concerns On The Money: Anxious Democrats push for vote on COVID-19 aid | Pelosi, Mnuchin ready to restart talks | Weekly jobless claims increase | Senate treads close to shutdown deadline Democratic senators ask inspector general to investigate IRS use of location tracking service MORE has gained significant ground following her decisive victories in both the first and second Democratic primary debates.

Indeed, a Quinnipiac poll now has Warren surging to second place in the race, garnering 21 percent of the vote, up more than 6 points since before the second debate. While the same poll still has Biden leading the pack with 32 percent of the vote, it is significant that Warren has cut into the share of support for Senator Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersThe Hill's Campaign Report: Trump faces backlash after not committing to peaceful transition of power Bernie Sanders: 'This is an election between Donald Trump and democracy' The Hill's 12:30 Report: Trump stokes fears over November election outcome MORE and Senator Kamala Harris Kamala HarrisHundreds of lawyers from nation's oldest African American sorority join effort to fight voter suppression Biden picks up endorsement from progressive climate group 350 Action 3 reasons why Biden is misreading the politics of court packing MORE, who trail Warren by 7 points and 14 points. While Biden still leads in Iowa, Warren has made notable gains out in this early caucus state as well. A Monmouth poll has Biden leading with 28 percent of the vote, though Warren is not far with 19 percent, ahead of both Sanders and Harris.

What are the implications of these trends? Ultimately, it is clear that, given the faltering appearances of Biden in the last two debates, he is at the very least frozen in the bottom thirties in terms of vote share. While he does remain the frontrunner, his lead has narrowed, and the excitement around his campaign has plateaued. The current momentum in the race is with Warren, which comes largely, but not totally, at the expense of her fellow top tier progressive. After watching Warren and Sanders share the stage during the second round of debates, it became clear that Warren is slowly displacing Sanders as the face of the progressive movement.

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Anecdotally, we also know that Warren is building a very robust ground operation in caucus states like Iowa and Nevada, which will undeniably give her an advantage as the race narrows. Prior history also tells us that candidates on the left tend to overperform in their polling numbers. Given that the energy is with the left wing of the party, we can say with near certainty that this will be the case with Warren. While there have been discussions within the party on her potential problem with “electability,” none of that suggests that there will be a widespread movement to not support Warren, notwithstanding the prior poll evidence which shows that Democratic voters would like to nominate the most electable candidate.

As we enter the thick of the primary season, Biden should understand that his campaign is slowly flagging and, perhaps at best, has leveled off since he announced his run, or has likely trended down. Although he remains the Democratic frontrunner, his path to the party nomination is far from certain. In terms of his tough progressive competitors, Warren is clearly the favorite, Sanders is slowly waning from the head of the progressive pack, and Harris has slipped from her bump following the first debate.

These recent trends also point to Warren being a possible favorite in Iowa, and likely in Massachusetts, which she represents in the Senate, giving her a significant early voting advantage. With that, South Carolina will be critical for Biden to capture because, if he wins very narrow victories in Iowa or New Hampshire, or even loses to Warren in these states, he will need to show strength in an early voting state prior to Super Tuesday. Given the large African American presence in South Carolina, Biden will necessarily have to win there if he is to remain the clear frontrunner.

Put simply, while the Democratic presidential primary race is certainly far from over, the most recent trends suggest that we can expect Biden and Warren to go head to head in the final battle for the party nomination.

Douglas E. Schoen (@DouglasESchoen) served as a pollster for President Clinton. He is a political consultant, Fox News contributor, and the author of “Collapse: A World in Crisis and the Urgency of American Leadership.”