Trump says he doesn’t see Haley ‘surge’ in polling

Former President Trump knocked Republican presidential challenger Nikki Haley on Monday, touting his wide lead in polling just more than a month out from the first primary contest.

“Where’s the Nikki Surge?” Trump wrote in a post on his platform Truth Social. “I hear about it from the Fake News Media, but don’t see it in the Polls, or on the Ground.”

“In any event, I hope she and DeSanctimonious are doing well, and continue the same ‘Surge’ as they’ve had for the past eight weeks!” the former president added.

Trump linked to a recent NBC News/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll of Iowa Republicans likely to attend the Jan. 15 caucuses. The poll found 51 percent of the respondents listed Trump as their first choice, 19 percent picked Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and 16 percent selected Haley.

The Hill has reached out to Haley’s campaign for comment.

Haley, the former governor of South Carolina who served as Trump’s first United Nations ambassador, has battled DeSantis for the No. 2 spot in the primary behind Trump, and the pair sparred in the latest Republican debate last week that Trump again skipped.

The former president has held a large lead in national and early-state polls, but his GOP challengers are seeking a strong showing in either Iowa or New Hampshire, hoping it propels an insurgent bid to topple Trump. The former president is also battling charges in four criminal cases, with the first trial scheduled to begin in March amid the primaries.

Haley has seen her numbers tick up this fall, especially in New Hampshire where she has moved into second place, though she and DeSantis remain far behind Trump in most polls.

Last week, Trump gave his review of performances by his GOP primary rivals in the fourth Republican debate and declared entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy the winner. Ramaswamy, the candidate on stage most likely to defend Trump, generally polls behind DeSantis and Haley.

Trump called DeSantis “terrible” and critiqued his physical movements around the stage, claimed former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie suffered from “Trump Derangement Syndrome” and attacked Haley, whom he referred to as “Birdbrain.”

The former president claimed the former U.N. ambassador looked “lost” during the debate, adding, “but I give her second place.”