Getty Poll: Sanders moves ahead of Clinton by 5 in Iowa

Bernie Sanders notched another polling victory against Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, this one in Iowa, where he now leads the former secretary of state, according to the results of the latest Quinnipiac University poll.

The Vermont senator picked up 49 percent support from likely Democratic caucus-goers, while Clinton earned 44 percent. In last month's Quinnipiac survey, Clinton earned 51 percent, while Sanders came in second with 40 percent. In this poll, former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley took 4 percent, with 3 percent remaining undecided.


Sanders, who has made the issue of yawning economic inequality a central plank, holds an 11-point advantage among those reporting an income of $50,000 or less. Among those earning $100,000 or more, meanwhile, Clinton leads Sanders by 13 points. (Sanders also holds a 5-point lead among those with an income between $50,000 and $100,000.)

Just one in five of those likely to caucus on Feb. 1 said they might change their mind about whom they will support, while 78 percent said they have decided. Among Clinton supporters, 84 percent indicated firmness, compared to 73 percent of current Sanders backers.

Sanders opened up a 14-point lead over Clinton in New Hampshire in the latest Monmouth University poll released earlier in the morning. In that poll, Sanders' supporters indicated that they were more fiercely committed to their candidate than supporters of Clinton were to theirs.

The gender gap between the top two candidates persists in Iowa, with Sanders earning the support of 61 percent to 30 percent of men and Clinton earning 55 percent to 39 percent from women.

In terms of favorability, Sanders holds a commanding net positive rating of 84 points (87 percent to 3 percent), while Clinton is relatively lower at a net positive 53 points (74 percent to 21 percent).

Sanders also leads Clinton on most character traits, with 96 percent of likely caucus-goers responding that the Vermont senator cares about their needs and problems and just 1 percent who thought he did not. Meanwhile, 76 percent to 21 percent thought the same of Clinton.

At the same time, a larger share of likely caucus participants (85 percent) said Clinton would have a better chance of defeating the Republican nominee in November than Sanders would. A little less than seven in 10 (68 percent) said the same of the senator.

The Quinnipiac poll was conducted via landlines and cellphones from Jan. 5-10, surveying 492 likely Democratic caucus participants with a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.

Clinton and Sanders are now effectively tied in the RealClearPolitics polling average of Iowa surveys between Jan. 2 and Sunday. Clinton holds an average of 45.5 percent support, while Sanders is at 45.3 percent.