Joe Biden Slips to Single-Digit Lead in South Carolina

Former Vice President Joe Biden has slipped to a single-digit lead in South Carolina—a state he has dominated since launching his candidacy.

A new poll released on Thursday by Change Research and The Post and Courier found the former vice president with only a seven-point advantage over his nearest challenger, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT). Biden led the 2020 field with 27 percent among South Carolina Democrats, with Sanders in second at 20 percent. Close on Sanders’ heels in third place was Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) with 19 percent.

Further behind in fourth place was South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg with nine percent, followed by Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and environmentalist billionaire Tom Steyer at five percent each. Rounding out the poll were Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, with four and three percent respectively.

The poll, which surveyed 392 likely Democrat voters between December 6-11, indicates Biden’s support has dropped significantly in recent weeks. Since entering the 2020 race, the former vice president dominated the competition in South Carolina. In May, Change Research had Biden leading by more than 30 percentage points. The former vice president maintained a double-digit advantage among Palmetto State Democrats as recently as October when Change Research found him besting Warren, 30 percent to 19 percent.

Hegseth ending military education ties with Harvard amid Trump feud: ‘We train warriors, not wokesters’

Hegseth says National Guard members shot in DC ambush by Afghan national will receive Purple Heart

SBA freezes over 100,000 California borrowers in sweeping $9B pandemic fraud crackdown

Israeli Government-Funded ‘Mobile Museum’ Set to Visit US Churches to Promote Zionism

Hundreds of Bizarre References to ‘Pizza’ in New Epstein Documents Raise Eyebrows

Watch: NFL Players Accidentally Prove Bad Bunny Is a Horrible Choice for Super Bowl Halftime Show

Conservative firebrand vows to purge ‘RINOs’ in battle to replace retiring Vern Buchanan in open Florida seat

When anti-ICE clashes trigger federal intervention: Experts explain the constitutional breaking point

North Carolina man charged with three counts of statutory rape held on ICE detainer

Nancy Guthrie’s Neighbor Details Mysterious Sighting Shortly Before Disappearance

Fox News Campus Radicals Newsletter: Top teachers’ union under fire, anti-ICE agitator network exposed

Actor and Producer Timothy Busfield Charged with Committing Child Sex Crimes on Set

Gonzales introduces bill to expand protections for Border Patrol assisting state, local law enforcement

Early missteps, delayed search plane response emerge in Savannah Guthrie’s mother disappearance

Democrats silent on past rhetoric toward Trump Cabinet member after foiled assassination plot

Biden’s decline in South Carolina poses a major problem for his presidential ambitions, especially as his campaign struggles to gain traction in the first two nomination contests.

A poll conducted in Iowa only a month after Biden’s announcement found the former vice president leading his rivals by nearly ten percentage points with likely caucus-goers. Biden maintained that lead until early September when his youngest son’s foreign wheeling and dealing took center stage in the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. Since then, Biden has steadily fallen, most recently hitting fourth place in Iowa behind Buttigieg, Warren, and Sanders.

Similarly, the former vice president has lost ground in New Hampshire, which at one point seemed like fertile territory given its large working-class population. Polling conducted by Monmouth University in May had Biden commanding 36 percent of New Hampshire’s Democrat electorate, 18 percentage points more than his nearest rival. Now the former vice president finds himself in third place behind Sanders and Buttigieg, according to polling averages analyzed by Real Clear Politics.

As Biden’s position in both Iowa and New Hampshire has faltered, the former vice president has counted on South Carolina to be a firewall. Victory in the Palmetto State, which is the last early state on the calendar, would give Biden significant momentum heading into Super Tuesday, when 14 states, including seven from the South, hold their primaries. If the former vice president were to lose South Carolina, his campaign would be sapped of media attention and likely unable to remain in the contest.