Pete Buttigieg Surges to Second as Warren, Sanders Drop in New Poll

New polling shows out presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg continuing to poll strong among Democrats and Democratic-leaning voters. One outlet finds him in fourth place among a still-crowded primary field. Another shows he's climbed to second place.

A survey released by CNN shows he still trails primary opponents Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren.

In that poll, Vice President Biden continues the lead the field with 28 percent support. Meanwhile, Vermont Sen. Sanders comes in at 17 percent and Massachusetts Sen. Warren sits at 14 percent. South Bend, Ind., Mayor Buttigieg sits at 11 percent.

No other candidate cracks 4 percent.

The poll, conducted by SSRS, establishing Buttigieg as a top-tier candidate, albeit at the bottom of that pack.

Indeed, a close look at the numbers shows the Hoosier gaining ground since October, while Biden and Warren slipped.

Just 42 percent of voters in the poll say they have decided definitely who they are voting for. When the field gets limited to the top four contenders, voters break 35 percent for Biden, 23 percent for Sanders, 20 percent for Warren, and 17 percent for Buttigeg.

Polling in recent weeks has shown a consistent top four. The CNN poll comes out a day after a Quinnipiac University poll showed even better news for Buttigieg. That found Democratic voters and independent voters leaning Democratic favored Buttigieg over all candidates except Biden.

The survey pegged Biden's support at 24 percent, Buttigieg's at 16 percent, Warren's at 14 percent, and Sanders's at 13 percent. That marked a big shift from Quinnipiac's October polling, where Buttigieg was at 10 percent and behind Sanders. More important, Warren fell from the top of the pack in October, with 28 percent, to third place.

Of course, Warren's love within the LGBTQ community was demonstrated Monday with a strong performance in what is said to be the first-ever poll of LGBTQ+ likely primary voters. There, she led the field with 31 percent of the vote to Sanders's 18 percent, Biden's 16 percent, and Buttigieg's 14 percent.