On Politics

Tue Jan 9 2024

Marina Pitofsky | Associate Editor/Politics

Hi OnPolitics readers! Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has made major gains in narrowing the gap with former President Donald Trump in the nation's crucial first primary, which is now just two weeks away.

In an exclusive USA TODAY/Boston Globe/Suffolk University Poll, Trump leads Haley in New Hampshire 46%-26%, with former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie at 12% and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy in single digits, at 8% and 2%, USA TODAY's Susan Page, Savannah Kuchar and Sudiksha Kochi report.

🗳️2024 primaries approach: The former president's 20-percentage-point lead is huge, but it's a significant change from our October poll, when Trump held a 30-point lead over Haley

❓What if Christie dropped out? Christie, the loudest voice against Trump in the Republican field , has gained 6 points in the past three months, but he's facing calls to drop out in hopes of strengthening Haley's position as the leading alternative to the former president.

If the former New Jersey governor did drop out, a fair share of his supporters say they would support Haley, but not all of them. Without him in the race, Trump would lead Haley 47%-32%, which would send the race closer to upset territory.

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Pentagon reveals Defense chief's illness that has kept him in hospital

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin listens during a House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense hearing regarding the 2023 budget request for the Department of Defense, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on May 11, 2022. The US military carried out strikes on three sites used by Iran-backed forces in Iraq on December 25 after an attack wounded American personnel earlier in the day, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said.

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