Bernie Sanders Takes The Lead In Iowa Just Weeks Before Caucus

All of those Bernie Sanders’ meme groups on Facebook are going to have something to celebrate over the weekend. Because according to the latest batch of polls, their candidate has retaken the lead in Iowa.

Per the latest Des Moines Register/CNN poll released on Friday, Sanders frog-leaped over his top rivals to secure the No. 1 spot, up from a No. 3 finish back in November.

The poll is widely seen as the most accurate and authoritative predictor of who will win the Iowa caucus, according to the Hill.

Though it’s probably just a coincidence, Sanders latest bump in the polls follows an endorsement from model/actress Emily Ratajkowski, best known for being Hollywood’s most visible proponent of ’empowered’ feminism (so long as it doesn’t come between her and booking another job).

“Bernie is extremely genuine. He’s consistent. He’s powerful, not because of who he is as one person, but because of the way he invigorates people and excites them, and brings together this movement.” –@emrata pic.twitter.com/ZTD8jjHHCI

— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) January 9, 2020

Meanwhile, since the mainstream press simply can’t tolerate the notion of Bernie Sanders nominee, Time Magazine has conveniently published the cover for this week’s edition. Unsurprisingly, it’s a hagiography of Nancy Pelosi.

TIME’s new cover: “We’ve upped the ante.” Why Nancy Pelosi is going all in against Trump https://t.co/Oj0kQ2sDn2 pic.twitter.com/eGlRKOPDTF

— TIME (@TIME) January 9, 2020

But Dems weren’t the only ones upset by the poll results. Others speculated that a Trump vs. Sanders matchup in the fall would make them question whether America is still indeed worth saving.

If the two presidential nominees are Trump and Sanders – if that truly reflects what the two main parties stand for – then I honestly have to start asking the troubling question whether this country still has much of a future.

I believe it does, btw. But I might be wrong.

— Patrick Chovanec (@prchovanec) January 11, 2020

Because four years of either … I just can’t imagine. It pains me to think of being around for it.

— Patrick Chovanec (@prchovanec) January 11, 2020

Unsurprisingly, Sanders’ big advance in the polls has translated over to online betting markets, where he has moved firmly back into second place, behind only Joe Biden.

RealClearPolitics’ poll aggregator has Sanders in second place behind Biden nationally.

Sanders picked up 20% of support in the Iowa poll (up 5 percentage points from late last year), giving him a plurality, though not by much. Rival Senator Elizabeth Warren placed second with 17%, followed by former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg in third with 16% (a drop of 9 percentage points from the previous poll by the same group).

Joe Biden, meanwhile, came in fourth with just 15%.

Iowa caucusgoers will cast their votes on Feb. 3 for the first-in-the-nation contest.

To be sure, the Iowa caucuses have a reputation for being difficult to forecast. But setting its esoteric system aside (a system that requires caucusgoers to show up on-location in the dead of winter and argue about who is the best candidate in a gymnasium full of strangers), only 40% of respondents said they are sure of their choice, which leaves a wide margin of undecided voters who could still sway the results in the coming weeks.

And there’s still the question of Sanders’ fragile health in the wake of a heart attack that gave many of his supporters reason to reconsider whether he is truly the right candidate to lead the country.