Look who’s tied with Trump in Iowa

New poll results may surprise some.

His bombastic campaign style has earned Donald Trump a lot of supporters, a lot of haters, a lot of media coverage, and now, a serious competitor in the polls.

A new Monmouth University poll released today shows Dr. Ben Carson has made up some serious ground and is now tied with Trump, with both garnering the support of 23% of likely Republican caucus-goers.

There’s a reason these two men are polling so well right now: both are political outsiders. Whereas Trump likes to loudly, er, trumpet his outsider status, Carson is a bit more understated in his approach. But its clear that the grassroots like what they’re hearing from both candidates.

Both Trump and Carson saw bumps in their poll numbers after the first Republican presidential debate, with Trump gaining support from many who perceived the Fox News moderators — particularly Megyn Kelly — as being biased against the frontrunner. Carson also gained new support for his charm and wit, and, well, he’s very much not loud and brash, but is still strong with the anti-DC messaging.

All 17 GOP candidates should take note of these results. While poll numbers can be way off this far out from any actual voting, it’s clear that an outsider status is playing well at this stage of the game.

Does this mean the beginning of the end for Donald Trump? Probably not. But it’s a good sign that grassroots America is receptive to a political outsider, be he or she a bombastic dynamo or an understated stalwart.