Donald Trump efforts to court evangelicals are working, if a new poll is any indication.
In one week, Trump’s support among white evangelical adults has risen five points to stand at 37 percent, according to an NBC News/SurveyMonkey tracking survey released early Tuesday. Meanwhile, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz stands at 20 percent, a nine-point drop since Jan. 17.
With 11 percent, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson sits in third place, down one point, while Florida Sen. Marco Rubio gained two points to take in 10 percent support.
Nationwide, Trump is supported by 39 percent of Republican and Republican-leaning voters in the poll, more than 20 points higher than any other GOP candidate. Cruz stands at 17 percent, while Rubio is at 10 percent. No other candidate received double-digit support.
“I’m not surprised I’m doing very well with the evangelicals,” Trump said during an interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” Tuesday morning, describing himself as a religious person.
The tracking survey of 9,690 adults was conducted Jan. 18-24, with 8,215 who indicated they are registered to vote. The overall margin of error is plus or minus 1.3 percentage points.
