Gingrich surging in GOP polls

DES MOINES, Iowa, Dec. 6 (UPI) -- A third poll released Tuesday puts Newt Gingrich in the driver's seat among Republican presidential candidates heading into the Iowa caucuses.

The New York Times/CBS News poll found the former House speaker from Georgia is favored by 31 percent of those Republicans likely to attend the Jan. 3 caucuses, the first stop in the GOP nominee selection process. Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, came in at 17 percent, U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas garnered 16 percent and Texas Gov. Rick Perry picked up 11 percent.

The rest of the Republican field was in single digits, with U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota at 9 percent and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania at 4 percent, the Times said.

The telephone survey of 642 registered voters, conducted Nov. 29-Dec. 5, took into account the departure of Herman Cain. With him in the lineup, 7 percent of likely caucus-goers said they supported him, with Gingrich getting 28 percent, Romney 18 and Paul 14 percent, the Times said.

The margin of error is plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Gingrich also topped the ABC/Washington Post poll released Tuesday with 3 percent to 18 percent for both Paul and Romney. The Des Moines Register's Iowa Poll this past weekend gave Gingrich 25 percent, Paul 18 percent and Romney 16.

Gingrich is also showing strength in South Carolina, where a Winthrop University poll released Tuesday had him with 38 percent to 22 percent for Romney, and Perry a distant third at 9 percent.