New data from the Des Moines Register offers poll watchers plenty to mull over. Here’s how the Dems rank in the first caucus state:
Hillary Clinton — 29% (up from 21% in May)
John Edwards — 23% (down from 29%)
Barack Obama — 22% (down from 23%)
Bill Richardson — 8% (down from 10%)
Joe Biden — 5% (up from 3%)
Chris Dodd — 1% (up from less than 1%)
Dennis Kucinich — 1% (down from 2%)
Mike Gravel — less than 1% (down from 1%)
And among Republicans:
Mitt Romney — 29% (down from 30% in May)
Fred Thompson — 18% (up from N/A)
Mike Huckabee — 12% (up from 4%)
Rudy Giuliani — 11% (down from 17%)
John McCain — 7% (down from 18%)
Tom Tancredo — 5% (up from 4%)
Ron Paul — 4% (up from less than 1%)
Alan Keyes — 2% (up from N/A)
Sam Brownback — 2% (down from 5%)
Duncan Hunter — 1% (unchanged)
As for analysis, the Dems’ standings don’t offer too many surprises, though I thought Dodd would be a little better off in Iowa than he is now. Among Republicans, if McCain finishes fifth, that’ll be pretty embarrassing. And Brownback and Hunter should probably reconsider this entire endeavor, now that their numbers in Iowa are on par with Alan Keyes.