Former President Donald Trump dominates former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley with Republican South Carolina voters ahead of Saturday’s GOP primary, but the final margin should be much closer because independent voters prefer Haley, the state’s former governor.
In the latest Emerson College Polling/Hill survey, Trump leads with Republicans 71%-29%, a dominance unseen in most GOP-leaning states.
But his lead is just 8 points overall when independents are included, a key factor because the state has an open primary system, which lets registered voters choose if they want to vote in the Democratic or Republican primaries.
“South Carolina holds an open primary. There is a divide among Republican and independent affiliated voters,” Emerson College Polling Executive Director Spencer Kimball said. “Voters who affiliate as Republicans break for Trump over Haley, 71%-29%, while
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